PnF: Species is a Constant
by Sols06
Summary: Takes Place as Teenagers - Ferb finds out the hard way that sometimes even things as concrete as species can change. Accidentally turned into a dog, Ferb must now figure out how to face life in this new form, as Phineas tries all he can to change his brother back into a human. No pairings, no slash.
1. Chapter 1

***Total number of Chapters: 19***

***One Chapter posted per day***

**Chapter 1**

June 11th was Phineas' seventeenth birthday. But today wasn't June 11th; in fact, it was June 23rd.

Though festivities and celebrations had finished well over a week ago, both Ferb and Phineas had deemed it still a "birthday week." They had partaken in all kinds of birthday projects, from a pneumatic balloon popper at the actual party, to an extravagant fireworks display they had just put on yesterday.

Yet, as the date grew further away, the two brothers had to finish up the last day of their birthday celebrations with a special creation. For this one, Phineas had to specifically order the power cells from an out-of-town supplier, and it took the delivery truck a whole four hours to arrive with the box.

As it was the final birthday invention, Phineas and Ferb decided they just wanted to have a little fun with it. Phineas had suggested the name "illusionation," due to the machine's function.

After Phineas had gently screwed and installed the slightly-glowing cylinders, he moved backwards to overlook the almost-finished machine. The powerful, perhaps slightly unstable, raw energy from the cores would run along the nozzle and focus it towards a target, which is where the illusionation came in.

Uncontrolled power, when controlled of course, made all varieties of objects turn into many sorts of silly things. Phineas squeed with glee when a pair of shoes turned into a fish bowl, and model airplane into a roll of toilet paper.

Naturally, all items harmlessly returned to normal after an hour or two when the effects wore off. Then, Phineas would suggest yet another object to try out.

"Hah, what would happen if we used a pile of grass?" Phineas put forward. He bent down to scoop up a handful.

"…Would it work on several blades at once?" Ferb asked in contemplation, placing a hand on his chin.

"Dunno. One way to find out, though!" Phineas replied, putting the floating pieces in front of the machine's targeting. "How many more cores do we have left?"

Ferb tipped his head over the edge of the brown cardboard box that was lying in the lawn beside him. He looked a bit surprised for a second, and then turned up to answer Phineas, "Looks like just one more."

With a slight disappointment, Phineas requested, "Which color is it?"

"It's a purple one," came Ferb's reply.

By now, Phineas had come to stand beside Ferb near the box. He bent down and grabbed the little glass item off of the cardboard bottom and held it up to the light. "Alright, so last one. Let's do something fun for the last one."

Pulling it over to the open inner-workings of the machine, Phineas leaned inside it, past the unlatched metal door. Here, there was already a central yellow core, and nearby was a vacant connector space. Phineas slid the purple cylinder gently over to it, where it fit perfectly.

"Oh wait," Phineas said as he heaved his body difficultly back over the edge, breathing slightly as he stood up in the lawn. "There's a loose bolt back there! But I can't reach it."

Phineas had pointed with a tossing finger towards the far side of the machine's inner wall, past where the cores were housed. He put his hand down and started over towards the garage. "Hold on, Ima go get the flange tuner. I'll be right back."

Ferb watched his brother as he rounded the corner of the house, heading for the side door. Then he looked back over to the machine.

True, the bolt was on the far side of the machine, but Ferb stuck his head inside anyway. As he rested his wrists on the side of the door, Ferb drew out his hand and looked down at it. Ferb knew his arms were much longer than Phineas' were; he could reach it, no problem.

Bending backwards, Ferb snatched a wrench off of the worktable beside him. He rolled up his sleeves and leaned further in. He nodded in satisfaction as the tool slid easily onto the bolt in question. Ferb could fix it in no time, and would surprise Phineas when he got outside.

As the tool spun around in a circle, Ferb had to reposition his other arm a little in order to hold on to the wrench as it made the rotation. After about fifteen seconds of this, however, Ferb felt a strange, almost burning sensation on the side of his elbow.

He looked down curiously, and jumped in alarm. Ferb let go of the wrench in a flinging motion as he staggered backwards and rubbed the red spot that had formed on his arm. Though he had not realized it at first, he had been resting his skin right against the yellow central core.

Ferb felt dizzy and he tried to maintain his balance. The machine hummed lightly, growing in its gentle sounds until the purple core finally popped, sending its colorful liquid into the drainage bin.

Now Ferb tried to blink as he attempted to make sense of it all. He wondered why his shirt was beginning to feel so loose over his shoulders, and he wondered why he couldn't stay standing upright on his feet. As he fell over into the grass, his belt seemed to have grown a few sizes, and now his pants and shirt had draped over him like a blanket.

He wanted to stand back up again, but when he tried to pull his arms around himself, he discovered that his sleeves were way too long around his wrists. Also in the process, he realized that his fingers had apparently disappeared.

Ferb wriggled in a slight panic around under his tangle of clothes. His feet came sliding out of his shoes and socks, which were not even the right size at all. As he ducked his head out from beneath the bottom of his shirt, he felt a strange tickling all along his back. It felt itchy, and as he tipped his head backwards Ferb took note of the long brown fur that was covering his back, sides, and… paws.

Tumbling out of his last articles of clothing, Ferb looked up at the machine, now a few feet above his head. If one thing was for sure: he wasn't a human anymore.

When he heard a shuffling sound coming from the garage area, Ferb spun around with a jump. He felt a horrible rush of guilt flow over him. Phineas had wanted that core for something special, and Ferb had went and wasted it for a stupid mistake. He knew better than to try to fix something as little as a loose bolt when it was so near that high amount of energy. What would Phineas think when he found out that Ferb had done something so dumb and insensible?

The sound of a door unlatching met Ferb's now-enlarged ears. He fell over backwards, tripping over his awkward paws as he attempted to make his way to the base of the back steps. He couldn't suppress his shameful feeling as he scrambled into the shadowed place beneath the wood steps. He could hide for an hour until it wore off.

Though he hadn't meant to, Ferb had ruined the finale to his brother's birthday week. He pushed his head into the dirt and leaves as he tried to ignore everything, and tried to quit imagining what disappointed thoughts Phineas would think towards him.

"Hey Ferb, I finally found it," Phineas called out as he rounded the corner. He was waving his prized red, metal industrial tool. "It was under the—"

Phineas left his feet planted in the grass when he stopped and noticed the empty backyard. "…Ferb?"

It was then that Phineas' eyes fell onto the pile of familiar-looking clothes, dropped messily in the grass near the machine. Phineas' jaw slacked as he limply released the grip of his tool, which landed with a clank beside him, and he rushed frenetically over towards the pile of unmoving articles.

"Ferb!" Phineas exclaimed, kneeling down and lifting up the corner of a sleeve with one hand. With the other he picked carefully through the folds of the fabric with concerned, searching eyes. "Ferb, where'd you go?"

Phineas tossed first the shirt, then the pants, around a couple of feet, before running his fingers through the green blades where the clothes had been resting.

Falling over, Phineas grabbed one of the shoes, and closed one eye to look inside it. He rested his elbows on the ground as he did the same with the other, before dejectedly dropping both back into the soft grass and pushing himself up.

Staring upwards to the bright, blue sky, Phineas called out, "Ferb…! Were you abducted off the face of the planet?"

When no answer came from the white clouds, Phineas sadly turned his gaze back to the now-quiet backyard. He frowned as he kept surveying. "Feeeerrrrbbb."

Shaking some of the dust off his face, Ferb's ears perked up a bit when he thought he heard the muffled shoutings of his name. His guilty mind kicked him when he heard the saddened tone behind the voice.

Ferb poked his head slightly out of the shadows. Phineas, looking for any movement, fixed his eyes on the obscured brown figure.

"Oh hi, Puppy," Phineas greeted sweetly, bending over a bit. "Are you lost?"

With a little shake of his head, Ferb tried to sneak back under the porch. He was stopped by the soft request of Phineas.

"Wait, Puppy," Phineas started with a hand placed haltingly forward. Ferb only stuck his nose out this time; he could still hear Phineas' low voice.

"Maybe you can help me find my brother?" he asked with a visible hint of distress. Phineas looked up again and glanced around the still backyard. "He's went missing…. An-and I'm really worried… about what might've happened to him."

Worried? That hadn't been at all what Ferb had meant to do. He had wanted to keep Phineas from feeling let down… He never had any intention of worrying him.

So, after giving a reluctant breath, Ferb pushed his head out of the shadows as he slunk out from the safety of the porch. He kept his head low as he trudged his paws over the ground, then coming to sit right at the base of Phineas' feet.

He looked up at him with bashful eyes, before breaking contact and staring down at the sides of his feet. He just gave a little, sad whine.

Phineas looked at him comfortingly, until a quite different expression came over his face.

"Hey, wait a second…" he started, bending over to try to see Ferb's tipped eyes. Phineas was analytically rubbing his chin with his hand, before he suddenly used it to point straight forward. "FERB, is that you?"

Still not looking up, Ferb just closed his eyes and nodded. When he heard no reply from Phineas, he was forced to stare upwards curiously. There, he saw that Phineas had already put his curled fingers near his mouth and had begun to giggle.

"You're so FLUFFY," he said through laughter. Then he settled down slightly and remarked, "But I'm glad you're okay."

After glancing down to his own furry chest, Ferb lowered his ears and gave a contradicting glare up to Phineas.

"What? I just meant that…" Phineas said, with shifting eyes left and right. "Well, when I came outside and saw the pile of clothes over there, I thought maybe you had disintegrated."

Ferb just lowered his chin into the grass and stuck his paws over his nose. Phineas came and sat cross-legged in front of him as he leaned closer.

"Hey, c'mon Ferb…." Phineas consoled. He laughed again. "If it was gonna make you change, at least you're not a whale or something, right?"

Rolling his eyes, Ferb tried to smile. It felt weird with a few pointy teeth.

"So," Phineas suggested, leaning back into a sitting position. "Can you talk English still?"

Ferb looked up at him. After a second, he opened his mouth and began, "I don't kn—" However, he interrupted himself and crossed his eyes when nothing more than a bark came out.

"Hrm, I'll take that as a no," inferred Phineas. Then he stood up out of the grass. "But the purple one wasn't really a too powerful one, anyway. You'll be fine by dinnertime."

Still refusing to get up, Ferb left his chin in the grass. Phineas reached down and poked him.

"Hey! In the meanwhile we can go find that old animal translator from way back when," Phineas suggested to him. This made Ferb tip his head up a bit to look at him. "I think we made a handheld one, didn't we?"

Shrugging, Ferb got back up to his feet, trying to remember to stand on all four of them. He still felt kind of itchy from the grass and strangeness of his fur. Phineas was already making his way towards the house by the time Ferb had gathered himself and followed.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Ferb trudged through the raised garage door behind Phineas. He still could not bring himself to raise his head any further than a few inches.

"Hey, hey," Phineas said, coming down to get his attention. He gave an inviting grin. "Why don't you go inside and get yourself comfy, and I'll go and grab the translator?"

Grasping the door handle, Phineas opened the way into the house for him. Ferb reluctantly, yet gratefully, nodded at Phineas and slipped upwards over the two or three steps.

The house was quite empty for that time of day. Candace was still in town for a class, and their dad was working late tonight. Ferb thought he could hear his mom shuffling around in the kitchen, but he came over to the living room couch without bothering her. He really saw no point in making himself known; after all, he would be fine in an hour or two, right?

Coming over to the big couch, Ferb hopped up onto it and sat down, preparing to wait for Phineas. The repositioning sound of boxes could still be heard from the garage area, and Ferb just lay over sideways to get a better look around the corner.

A couple of minutes passed by, and the grandfather clock in the corner kept its ticking. It had been ten minutes, then twenty. Soon, Ferb had rested his head upside-down on the cushion and peered at the clock's face. Now it had been a whole thirty-eight minutes since he had left Phineas in there.

It shouldn't have taken Phineas too long to find one of their projects. Sure it was from seven years ago, but the Flynn-Fletcher garage was surprisingly organized for a garage.

Ferb resolved to attempt to stumble off the cushioned edge. He ended up tumbling down by accident and landed hectically onto the carpet. He was sure the loud thump he made probably woke up Perry, wherever he was.

Popping his head through the open doorway and into the garage, Ferb found Phineas sitting on the concrete with the knees situated around a cardboard box.

"Oh, hi Ferb!" Phineas called out in welcome when he saw his company. Then he looked down at the box between his legs and seemed to have realized something.

"Ah yeah, you were waiting for me, weren't you?" he started. Then Phineas pulled out a few metal devices in his two hands.

"So I found the old translator right where I thought it was. But then I found a couple prismatic wire connectors next to it and it got me thinkin'..." Phineas held up a new-looking contraption, and slid himself and his box over to make a space beside him.

"Sorry, but then I got carried away and lost track of time. I wanna show you this, c'mere!" he said while ecstatically patting the ground next to him. Curiosity growing, Ferb trotted over and sat in the spot where he could peer over his brother's shoulder.

"See, I made a new one and gave it an upgrade," Phineas explained as he showed Ferb in detail what he had done. "'member the other one you had to bark into it and then it replayed the words translated? Well now this one sticks on your head and you don't even need to bark anymore."

Ferb was interestingly watching as Phineas turned the device around to show him. It had a curved piece that looked like it would fit near his ear, and another resembling a speaker that was joined by a single wire. Ferb expected this could fit easily over his neck.

"So we can pretty much toss the old one," Phineas mentioned, gently throwing the almost-rusted box onto the full trashcan. Then he turned back to Ferb and held up his new creation.

"Wanna go inside in the light and try it on?" Phineas asked suggestively. Of course, Ferb replied with a smile and a nod.

Their room provided the best lighting, and Ferb had hopped up onto his own bed to give Phineas a better angle.

With steadily adjusting hands, Phineas lifted the little device and placed it onto Ferb's head. Then, he circled the speaker part around and rested it on his neck.

After Ferb had lightly shook his head in a test, the reader resting behind his ear jostled around loosely. Then a tiny light lit up on the collar, and the speaker crackled on to emit Ferb's voice.

_Does it work?_

Phineas grinned widely and nodded. "Yep!"

Then Ferb lowered his eyes again. "I'm sorry, Phineas. I was trying to fix it for you and I thought I could reach back there. It was a dumb, stupid mistake and I shouldn'tve-"

Phineas had interrupted him with a reassuring 'shh' sound and smiled. "Hah, you're gonna wear the battery down on that thing."

He just repositioned to make Ferb look back at him again. "What's there to be sorry about?"

Ferb glanced up timidly. "...It was your birthday. And I ruined it."

"Naaaa! You didn't ruin anything," Phineas assured him. "And it's not my birthday anyway. We made it to have fun, right? Are you having fun?"

"Not particularly," Ferb answered. "It wasn't supposed to be used on people."

"Well, I'm sure we can find something fun about it," Phineas suggested. He came to sit right next to Ferb, and almost let their sides touch. He wrapped an arm around his fluffy neck as he looked at him.

"Why do you have brown fur, anyway?" Phineas asked. "Isn't it supposed to be green?"

"I honestly have no idea," was Ferb's reply. He had been wondering that, too.

But Phineas was not finished in his poking of Ferb's side as he ran his fingers through his fur. Then, Phineas had grabbed the bottom of Ferb's jaw and was looking in detail at his teeth.

Though he was somewhat surprised at Phineas' investigation, Ferb just rolled his eyes and went with it.

"You have really pointy teeth," Phineas said. Though Ferb couldn't see what Phineas was doing, he thought he felt Phineas poking them as he opened his mouth wider.

He then grabbed Ferb's paw in one hand, and was lifting it up in a circular motion. He moved it in and out.

"You know, that purple core did a pretty convincing job," Phineas said as he continued to test out Ferb's paws. "Cause you look _just_ like a dog."

"Boys!" came their mom's voice as she was heard walking up the steps. "Your dad's working late tonight, so I'm using the kitchen table for papers. You can eat dinner in your room if you want-"

She came in the doorway, holding two plates of food in her hands. When her eyes fell on the two of them sitting on the bed, she responded with an, "Awww."

Coming over, she brushed behind Phineas to put his plate on the nightstand next to him. Then she looked at Ferb, who was still sitting curiously on the bed. When she spotted Phineas holding his paw, their mom gave a seemingly understanding smile with a laugh, and patted Phineas' back. She commented, "There you are, Phineas. Always being so helpful."

With a confused glance down to the second plate in her hand, their mom looked back up, gazing perplexedly at the rest of the room.

"Well, I brought up a plate for Ferb, too," she explained, before pausing for a moment and making her way to the small table in the corner of the bedroom. "But I'll leave it on his desk for him so he can eat it when he gets back."

Phineas and Ferb gave a strange look to each other, as their mom proceeded to exit the room. Then, she turned around for a second to warn gently, "I want you to be careful with that dog though, Phineas. You never know when they might bite you."

When their mom had left, Phineas looked over to Ferb and giggled at him. "Are you going to bite me?"

"Ew, no," Ferb responded. "I have just as much of a desire to bite people as a dog as I had a desire to bite people as a human."

"...Aaaand how much of a desire do you have to bite people as a human?"

"None!" Ferb explained quickly. "I was saying that I have _no_ desire. What possible reason would I have to run around biting people?"

"So you don't mind if I keep poking your teeth?" Phineas requested as he bent down to peer under Ferb's chin.

"Actually, I kind of need those to eat my food," he said, curling his lip.

"Oooh yeah, I almost forgot Mom brought those up!" Phineas realized, bending around to snatch up his own plate from the nightstand. Then he looked over to Ferb's desk on the other side of the bed.

"Though I'm not really sure why she put yours way over there," Phineas mentioned as he brought his plate and set it on the surface beside Ferb's. Then Ferb stood up to follow him over the bed covers to that side of the room, and jumped into the wooden chair that was situated at the edge of the table.

Paying careful attention, Phineas watched with helpful eyes as his brother looked at the plateful of food in front of him.

"Do dogs like broccoli?" Phineas put forward.

"Well, I don't know about _dogs,"_ Ferb replied, turning his head in investigation. "But _I_ like mom's broccoli. Though right now I'm trying to figure out how to eat it."

Putting his paws on the table, Ferb bent down a little, before pulling back. "But just licking it off the plate is so... uhh, _unsanitary."_

"Here!" Phineas suggested, taking some of Ferb's chicken with the fork on the plate's edge. "I'll hold it here and you eat it."

Tilting his head sideways, Ferb gauged it a little, then opened his mouth and took the piece in his teeth. After some difficulty, he chewed it and swallowed.

"That looks like it's hard to do," Phineas noticed.

"Yeah," Ferb responded with a breath. "Maybe smaller pieces."

Phineas ate some of his own food as he continued to provide forkfuls for Ferb. It took Ferb considerably longer to finish his meal than it did Phineas.

When both plates had been emptied, Ferb went and sat on the bed again. He looked, almost concerned, at Phineas. "What time is it?"

"I think we ate dinner late tonight cause Dad's not here," Phineas thought. "So by now I think it's like 8 or 9."

"The day's almost over..." Ferb moaned, putting his chin on his paws. "I thought it would only be a few hours."

"Yeah..." Phineas said distantly. "I guess maybe it's different cause it's on a person and not just a thing."

Ferb just whined through his nose.

"Aw, cheer up, Ferb," Phineas comforted as he jumped beside him. "It probably just needs a little more time, is all."

"Hmf," was Ferb's response. "I just hope I don't have to stay this way for too long."


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Ferb's eyes were drooping as he rested his head on his purple bedspread. He had been lying here for a few minutes as Phineas cleaned up from dinner.

"You tired?" Phineas asked gently when he came back in the room from dropping the plates off in the kitchen.

"Yeah," Ferb replied. Then he shook his head, and his translator rattled around on his ear. "I think I should take this off before I fall asleep. It's itching me."

"Sure," Phineas answered, coming to sit beside him. Ferb stood up on his paws so Phineas could reach the device on his head. After lightly situating it, Phineas slid it off of his brother's head and neck, to place it on the nightstand.

"Good?" Phineas asked. Ferb gave him a nod, before making his way to the top of his bed and falling down onto the pillow.

After offering a caring glance to the now-sleeping Ferb, Phineas stood up from the bed. He snatched up his pajamas that were folded neatly on the bed across from him, and he headed to the bathroom to finish up getting ready.

Once Phineas had brushed his teeth and returned, the lights were turned off with a click and Phineas slipped comfortably under his covers.

* * *

The night was still dark, and the house was still quiet, when Phineas was awoken by some sounds and a movement that he felt by his feet. He pulled the covers off of his nose and peered sleepily down to the bottom of the bed.

"Awww," Phineas said with a smile when he saw Ferb curled up on the corner of the comforter. When he heard Phineas' voice, Ferb tipped his eyes up and looked at him through the darkness.

Phineas kept his grinning. "Did you get all lonely over there by yourself?"

"Not exactly, but it was a bit chilly… I'll never be used to this fur…" Ferb answered back to him.

"Ferb," Phineas opened his mouth, choking on a chuckle. "You do realize that all you just said was 'woof,' right?"

"Oh… oh, yeah," Ferb responded quietly, putting his head back down.

With a glance over to Ferb's bed, Phineas looked at the still-folded bed sheets, then back to Ferb by his feet.

"Couldn't figure out how to get under the covers, huh?" Phineas inferred. Ferb's tone of a whine said it all.

Sitting rather quickly up from the bed, Phineas pulled his hands forward with the declaration, "You need a hug."

Ferb yelped in surprise when he felt himself get grabbed up suddenly and snuggled by Phineas. At first he impulsively started to squirm, but then Phineas hugged him tighter and Ferb resolved to stop resisting. Phineas was right; there was nothing wrong with a hug.

Phineas released him and pulled back for a second, while Ferb leapt down to the floor. Then Phineas looked at him with a little concern.

"Though I was sorta expecting to see you as _you_ sleeping there on the bed when I woke up," Phineas mentioned, putting his hand on his chin in contemplation as he examined Ferb. "Do you feel any different?"

Glancing down at his furry chest and feet, Ferb looked back up at Phineas with sad eyes, and shook his head.

"Well… It hasn't been a full day yet," Phineas tried to explain. "Though it _is_ strange it's lasting this long for only the purple core."

Grabbing the covers off of Ferb's bed, Phineas kept talking. "We can figure it out more tomorrow. For now though, you'd probably like to get some sleep?"

With a jump onto his mattress, Ferb took the open spot in the now-uncovered bed and situated himself once more on his pillow. Phineas smiled at him again, while he returned the covers.

* * *

At first, Ferb felt funny under his sheets when he woke the next morning. He was not expecting to feel a tickling all along his back and feel the abnormal shape of his body as he drifted up from sleepiness. But, as he opened his eyes and remembered the happenings of the previous day, he realized that there had still been no change.

He popped his head out from under his covers, and found Phineas sitting on the bed across the room, already in the process of getting dressed.

"Heya…" Phineas greeted, but he was mirroring the unenthusiastic look that he saw on Ferb. Phineas finished pulling on his shoes and came over to sit on Ferb's bed.

"Hey, I know we kinda thought it would fix itself overnight," Phineas started to talk to him. "But all the other cores wore off, didn't they? You'll be fine in no time."

Reaching over to the nightstand, Phineas grabbed up the translator that had been strewn there. He pulled it over Ferb's willing head, saying, "Though right now you probably want this back?"

With careful hands, Phineas rested the metal device on the disheveled fur of Ferb's neck. Ferb gave him an appreciative look, when Perry entered in through their bedroom door.

"Oh, there you are, Perry," came Ferb's voice through the little speaker.

Ferb hopped down onto the wood floor and sat in front of his pet platypus. Perry gazed distantly up at him.

"Grrr."

Ferb opened his mouth, and let out a bark.

Perry paused for a moment. "Grrr."

Ferb gave a second bark.

"Grrr."

"Hah! What are you talking about?" Phineas asked inquisitively as he watched the scene in front of him.

After a delay, Ferb returned his attention to Phineas standing above him. "Wha, huh? I can't speak platypus."

"Oh," Phineas said with a giggle. "Well that translator doesn't translate those barks, only your thoughts. What are you saying to him?"

Looking over to Perry again, Ferb turned back to Phineas and a small grin came through. "I'm saying 'Bark'."

Amused, Phineas dropped down to the floor next to Ferb, and crossed his legs. He leaned forward and looked at Perry, before saying his own "Bark!"

Perry stood up, returning with a "Grrr," as he walked off, uninterested.

"Well," Phineas started after a moment, getting back to his feet. "What should we do today?"

At this, Ferb drew his glance down to the floor, and after a pause said quietly, "You can do something if you want. But _I_ can't very well do much of anything."

Sad eyes looked back up to Phineas. Ferb asked timidly, "Are you mad at me?"

"What! No, of course I'm not mad at you!" Phineas reacted, looking Ferb back straight in the eye. He smiled and pointed at himself, saying tenderly, "Do I look mad at you?"

"No…" Ferb made the observation.

Phineas bent down and scooped up Ferb, placing him on the bed. Though Ferb was not expecting it, he made no expression of surprise and just kept his nose tipped downwards. His brother jumped to sit next to him.

"You're being all mopey," he said factually.

"It's because it's all my fault," Ferb revealed with no delay. "This is all because of my own stupid decision."

"Don't say that," Phineas tried to console, but Ferb wouldn't listen.

"I'm not going to lie to myself. There's no denying that this is all my doing, and no one else's."

"But that's alright, Ferb," pointed out Phineas. "Everybody makes mistakes. It was just an accident."

Ferb refused to look back up. "An accident that I should've been smart enough not to make. And now I'm suffering from it."

"Hey," Phineas addressed directly. "So you turned yourself into a dog and you didn't mean to. So what? You're gonna get better."

"Am I?" Ferb said bleakly.

Countering it with his own optimism, Phineas leapt off of the bed and responded, "Yeah! Now lets go downstairs and get breakfast. I'm starving."

This made Ferb feel at least a little better, and he got up to follow his brother out of their bedroom to head down the steps.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

When Phineas reached the bottom of the steps with Ferb following, they found their mom organizing some things in the living room.

She peered upwards when she heard the thumping sounds of footsteps.

"Cute...!" she said upon seeing Ferb walking closely behind Phineas. She set down a paper and came to look at them. "So what's his name?"

"Hmm?" Phineas asked for a second. Then smiled he pointed downwards to his feet. "That's Ferb."

"Oh, how adorable! You named him after Ferb?" their mom squeaked. She came over and gave Phineas a hug around the neck. "Ah, I remember when you two were little and used to name your stuffed animals after each other."

Then she went back around to the couch in the living room and kept sorting things. After a moment of thought, she continued with the resolution, "That's so nice of you to keep him here, Phineas. I'll let him stay until you find his owner, as long as he stays out of trouble."

Standing still, Phineas put on a confused face and bent down to whisper in Ferb's ear, "What's she talking about?"

Ferb looked back at him and shrugged, also perplexed, replying, "Not sure."

After both of them stood and watched their mom for a few more seconds, Ferb got up and walked purposefully through the nearby doorway.

Their mom picked up her list again, and turned to walk past Phineas. As she did this, she commented, "Where IS Ferb?"

"Oh! Um," Phineas replied, turning around to look at the kitchen. "I think he just went in there to find something to eat."

"Okay, good," his mom replied as she gathered up her list again. "I made some quiche last night and put it in the fridge. You boys can go ahead and microwave it if you want."

"Okay, Mom!" Phineas thanked her, starting to head into the kitchen.

His mom hollered behind him, "I have a few errands to run today, don't forget to do the dishes while I'm gone!"

"Yep!" Phineas returned, now entering through the kitchen archway. Upon surveying the scene, he spotted Ferb with his paws halfway on the countertop as he peered over its edge.

"Hey... Phineas!" Ferb tried to bark. He pointed with his nose to the tile floor, where Phineas saw the translator lying haphazardly. "...It fell off."

Phineas followed his point and tried to figure out what he meant. "It just flew off your head when you tried to get up there?"

Ferb nodded.

"Huh, I'll have to find some tape for that thing or something," Phineas decided, opening up the refrigerator.

He found the aforementioned quiche easily, and pulled it out onto the countertop. He elaborated, "Lemme put this in the microwave then I'll find some tape, or a string."

Ferb gave his agreement, and left Phineas to his preparation of breakfast. Ferb wandered out into the front hall, to see his mom leaving out the doorway.

When she had opened it with one hand, she was somewhat startled to see Isabella standing out on the steps, hand ready to knock.

"Oh, hi Mrs. Flynn-Fletcher!" Isabella reacted. Then she tipped her searching stare into the house. "Are Phineas and Ferb home?"

"Hi, Isabella. Sure, they're in the kitchen getting breakfast," she answered, already partially out the door. "I'm heading out, but you can help yourself to some if you like."

"Thanks!" Isabella replied, watching Phineas' mom walk towards the car. Isabella then turned and came further into the house.

Ferb had been standing in the hallway while his mom left, and stayed with his feet planted as Isabella spotted him.

"Hello, Isabella," Ferb greeted her. But when it came out of his mouth instead of through the speaker, he remembered in regret that he had left his translator on the kitchen floor.

"Ooohhh! I didn't know Phineas and Ferb got a new puppy!" Isabella squeed in delight as she walked up to him.

"Uhh, no Isabella... It's just me, Ferb," he tried to explain as he backed slowly away. But Isabella understood not a word of it.

"You're just a sweet puppy, aren't you?" Isabella cooed, scooping him up and heading over to the couch.

"No, really Isabella, I'm not a puppy. I'm Ferb!" he repeated, but Isabella only saw his whistling moan as absolutely adorable as she sat on the couch and put him on her lap. His feet and paws were situated lopsidedly and he tried vainly to escape.

"Isabella..." he whined awkwardly. "Don't you think this is weird?"

"And you're so _ fluffy," _she kept saying, petting him on the head and running her fingers through his fur.

"Phineas?" Ferb barked loudly. Isabella just wrapped her arms around his neck with a smile.

"One sec, Ferb!" Phineas hollered from the kitchen. "It'll beep in a minute!"

"I'm hungry still, yes. But I'm not talking about that, I need my-" Ferb's attempt at a sentence was interrupted by Isabella rubbing his ears. To any normal dog it would seem wonderful, but Ferb couldn't help but turn his head away at the strange feeling.

Isabella had leaned forward to listen to Phineas' clanking from the kitchen. She wondered out loud, "What are they doing in there that he's shouting to Ferb?"

Now, Ferb was able to slink his way down onto the floor and out of Isabella's snuggling grasp.

"Aw, come back, Puppy," was Isabella's disappointed objection.

Safely on the ground, Ferb looked up and showed her a tiny awkward laugh, or a woof.

Phineas came in with the two plates of breakfast. When he looked up, he caught sight of their guest in the house.

"Isabella!" he brightened up with a grin. He held up the plates in his hands and mentioned, "I have one here for Ferb, but there's still plenty in there!"

As Phineas said this, he set one of the plates onto the coffee table in front of his brother.

Isabella watched in forced silence as the dog, who she had just been happily snuggling, came up to sit in front of the plate that Phineas had just designated as Ferb's.

Ferb barked his thanks at Phineas, but his ears were flat and he had a quite annoyed look on his face.

"OH! I'm sorry, Ferb! I totally forgot your translator, didn't I?" Phineas apologized quickly. Not a second later had he retreated into the kitchen and snatched up the device.

Still sitting quietly on the couch, Isabella's eyes were widening in disbelief while Phineas set the translator over the "puppy's" head.

"I'm sorry, bro," Phineas repeated. "You'd think there'd be some tape in the house."

"It's okay," Ferb answered. "It stays on well enough."

Then he turned to Isabella, finally able to say in English, through some static, "Hello, Isabella."

Drawing out a finger, Isabella put her other hand on her mouth and pointed at him_. "FERB!"_

She didn't talk again for a moment, then she turned a bright shade of red. "Ooohhh... I had no IDEA that was you! I was talking all cutsie to you and hugging you like a puppy...!"

Isabella sunk down into the couch. "And now I'm all embarrassed."

Phineas showed his teeth in a huge smile. "Well, he IS really fluffy."

After looking at Phineas' expression, Ferb couldn't help but grin himself.

Isabella looked at the two of them, and began to giggle. She commented, "I _was_ wondering why he had green fur."

"Wait, huh?" Phineas asked, as he and Ferb shared an interested look towards each other. "WE were wondering why he _didn't_ have green fur."

"See," Isabella explained as she got down on the floor to kneel beside Ferb. "If you move his fur like this-"

Then she stopped, frozen, and asked timidly, "Ferb...? Is it alright if I pet you?"

Ferb just nodded nonchalantly. He craned his neck to try to see what Isabella was pointing out. "I don't mind."

"Okay..." she said as she sorted through his fur. "See, down here at the bottom, all his fur is green."

Phineas' eyes grew curious, and he got down to also examine Ferb. He brushed his fingers through and saw what Isabella was talking about. At the roots of each strand was about a quarter inch of green fur.

"Hey, yeah!" Phineas exclaimed, standing up and pointing downwards at Ferb. "Ferb! Your hair is turning green!"

"What?" Ferb asked in surprise, standing up to spin around in an attempt to see his back. "I know it's supposed to be, but I'm actually _growing_ dog hair out of my skin?"

"Ferb..." Phineas asked slowly. He took a breath and continued with a slight hesitation. "You DID touch the purple core, right?"

"The purple core was _used,_ yes," Ferb replied, mimicking Phineas' tone of uncertainty. "...But the one I was actually _leaning against_ for a few seconds was yellow."

Phineas stayed speechless for a moment. Ferb turned around to better look up at him, concerned. "Why, Phineas? What does that mean? You were the one who did all the research on those things and ordered them, and I built the frame and put the nozzle together, remember?"

After remaining silent for another second, Phineas finally answered with an open mouth. "Ferb! The yellow one was in the center and powered the whole rest of the thing! You didn't tell me that you had touched that one."

"I-I didn't know..." Ferb responded, looking uneasily back and forth. He dipped his head down and looked up, ashamed. "...It was bad, wasn't it."

"You're growing dog hair because," Phineas answered cautiously. "...the core didn't just make you LOOK like a dog, the change went all the way down to your DNA. Your species changed and _everything."_

"Guys... you know how I get about all this species-changing mumbo-jumbo," Isabella eased. "...I still have a meeting to go to... But call me if you need help sorting this out."

"Okay," Phineas replied innocently. "You can grab a plate of quiche before you leave."

"Will do," Isabella answered. She left rather eagerly.

Ferb turned back to his brother. "Phineas. My DNA changed...? Meaning what, exactly?"

"Meaning," Phineas' elaborated with a little gulp. "That as far as your body's concerned, you were born that way. That's why you haven't changed back on your own."

"I...?" Ferb whispered, looking down at himself. He shifted his paws. "I don't have a single drop of human blood in me anymore?"

He fell down and put his chin on the carpet. "Does that mean I'm like this forever, and I'll never be my own self again?"

"No, no, Ferb. I didn't mean to make you sad," Phineas told him, also dropping to the carpet. "You're not like this forever. 'Indefinitely' would be a better word."

"Those mean the same thing, Phineas," Ferb pointed out. "I've lost my human DNA."

"Naaaa," contradicted Phineas. "Just cause you're not gonna change back on your own doesn't mean we can't change you back ourselves!"

Phineas gave him a playful punch on the shoulder. "All we need to do is go into your DNA and say, 'Hey DNA! Quit thinkin' you're a dog and start remembering you're supposed to be a human!'"

With a comical snort, Ferb stood back up on his front paws and commented, "Hah, and we're going to write them a nasty letter?"

"Nah, Ferb, that would be silly," Phineas laughed. "We'll make a serum."

"A serum?"

"Yeah! A human-changing serum!" Phineas assured him, pointing towards the garage door. "And I bet we already have everything in there. C'mon, Ferb, it'll be fun!"


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

"So how does this work?" Ferb asked, peering over the edge of the worktable where Phineas was fiddling with several vials.

"See look, I have all of the base chemical in this tube," Phineas showed him, holding up a clear vial containing a see-through liquid. He scooted his chair along to the other side of the table, passing many smoking canisters and colorful beakers.

Phineas reached far over the workspace and pulled up a corked tube with a single strand of hair resting inside.

"And here I have one of your hairs from when you were a human," Phineas said as he gently shook the container to jostle the hair. "I know it's yours cause I found it on your shirt, it's kind of long and it's green. So it really can't be anyone else's."

"Right," Ferb returned. "Because you couldn't just pluck it off of me. Somehow I got _brown dog hair."_

Spinning a little in his chair, Phineas looked down at Ferb, curiosity returning. "Yeah…. I was thinking about that and I think I figured it out. The machine decided to turn you into "A brown dog," but since you yourself have green hair, that's why the new stuff grows as green."

Another thought popped into Phineas' head, and he continued with a chuckle, "So if you stay like this for long enough to need a few haircuts, you'd eventually be a green dog."

"But I'm not… because you're going to fix it before then," Ferb confirmed tentatively. "A green dog might attract some attention."

"Yep…!" Phineas answered, turning back to his previous explanation of the science project in front of him. He had the clear liquid vial in one hand, and the one containing the strand of hair in the other.

"I'm going to attach these to the machine, and then it will come out finished at the end over there." Phineas pointed down to the far end of the table, where a little empty syringe was clasped, ready to be filled.

"But that's not all of it," Phineas kept explaining. "Then the machine also makes a capsule for a pill that has the rest of the serum in it. After I put the first part in you with the needle, it'll go into your DNA and then you eat the pill to activate it."

"…Sounds complicated," Ferb said anxiously.

"It's actually pretty simple," Phineas promised. "Needle goes in, serum splashes on all your DNA, then you eat a pill to tell it to be human again."

By now Phineas had pressed the button on the side of the machine, and the pistons and valves moved and whirred. The glass syringe gradually filled to the end, and some steam dissipating signified the serum was ready.

Plucking it off of the graspers, Phineas held the syringe to the light, and nodded his satisfaction.

"Oh, yeah…" came Phineas' sudden tone of remembering. "I forgot to say one liiiittttllee detail. It's actually kind of important."

Phineas was examining the liquid in the syringe as he furthered his speaking. "The serum actually takes a while to attach itself onto all of your DNA. You have a lot of it."

"Okay," Ferb agreed, coming over to sit in front of Phineas in preparation. "So it's like Asprin? It starts working in a half hour?"

"Umm, no, a bit longer than a half hour…" Phineas mumbled as he looked to the corner and scratched his ear.

"Phineas…" Ferb pushed. He put his paws on the side of his brother's seat so that he could look up at him. "How long is 'a bit longer'?"

"Weeeellll… I put all the numbers into the computer, and if it calculated everything right, the number it gave me was 107 hours."

"What?" Ferb exclaimed, pushing off the chair. "You mean to tell me that even _with_ the serum I have to stay like this for five days?"

"It's better than just sitting around and doing nothing," Phineas pointed out. Ferb just gave a huge sigh.

"I suppose that's true," he said. Then he trotted back over to Phineas' chair and sat on the concrete with his back facing him. "Go ahead and stick me with that thing, then, so my 107 hours can start soon."

"Oh, yeah, okay," Phineas said quietly. He got down onto the garage floor and sat on his knees next to Ferb. Then Phineas mumbled something that Ferb could not hear.

Ferb leaned a bit and turned his head over his shoulder to see what Phineas was doing. There, he saw his brother eyeing the sharp, thin needle that he held in his hand. The metal end sparkled with the light of the lamp.

Bending forward slightly, Phineas asked softly into Ferb's ear, "Ferb… How do I give a shot to a dog?"

"Uhh…" Ferb thought. "Don't they do it in the scruff of the neck?"

"Yeah, but where?" Phineas countered. "If I pinch you here… Do I do it in the base of where I grab you…? Or at the top or at the side?"

"I don't know…" Ferb responded, trying to imagine it. Then he declared, "I don't think it matters much, as long as it goes in."

"But what if I hit your nerves or the wrong muscle or I don't go deep enough or too deep. I don't want to hit something important and hurt you."

"You won't hurt me, Phineas," Ferb guaranteed to him. "I'll stand here still for you."

"I don't know, Ferb," Phineas denied. "I think maybe we should get the vet to do it."

"No. No, I'm not going to the vet," Ferb refused, shaking his head resolutely as he said it.

"Oh, don't be silly, Ferb. Just because you're a dog now doesn't mean you automatically have to be afraid of the vet," Phineas pointed out. "That's really pretty illogical if you think about it."

Ferb was looking up at him as Phineas tried to convince him, and Ferb debatably started to give a slow nod. Phineas furthered his growing agreement.

"And besides," Phineas started. "If _I_ were a dog, and you had to give ME a shot, would you want to?"

Reluctantly slumping up his shoulders, Ferb answered, "…Probably not."

Phineas rolled his finger through the air to prompt continuation. "And whyyyyyy?"

"…Because I'd be afraid I'd hit something important…"

"See?" Phineas finished, coming down to hug Ferb around the neck. "Don't worry, we'll go first thing in the morning when they open at eight."

* * *

Ferb was having a little trouble finding a position to sit on his tail in the passenger's seat of their red station wagon. Phineas was already behind the driver's wheel, when he turned to look at Ferb's situation.

"Try moving it first, and then sitting down," Phineas suggested. After following his advice, Ferb seemed to have found a comfortable position, although his feet were still sticking awkwardly out from under him.

Phineas reached over Ferb to grab his seatbelt, and pulled it around his furry back to clip it safely in its buckle. But Phineas couldn't help but notice that Ferb was turning around rather rapidly, apparently trying to look behind him, but kept spinning each time he got a good angle.

"_Now_ what are you doing?" Phineas asked in investigation.

"There are e_ars_ growing out of the back of my head, Phineas!" Ferb elaborated.

"Hah, you're just now figuring this out?" Phineas laughed. "You had ears growing out of the back of your head when you were a human, too, Ferb."

"Yeah, but I never realized how huge these ones were. They get in the way," Ferb complained. Then he stopped moving and froze, facing straight forward to stare blankly at the dash. Now, his ears had lowered flatly. "And I don't like it."

"Five days, Ferb," Phineas reassured. "You just gotta sit through five days and you'll be back to being you again."

"Not until I get stuck with that needle," Ferb replied, as Phineas started the car. "And preferably soon, I would very much like to be me again."

Phineas nodded and gave an exaggerated salute, turning around to put the car in gear. But then Ferb noticed him snatch a little plastic box off of the dashboard, and slide it delicately into his pocket.

Perking up, Ferb moved his head forward and asked, "What is in there?"

"Oh, this is just your human-changing pill thingy," Phineas replied as he put he cheek on the headrest to look behind him.

"Why are you bringing that?" Ferb asked honestly. "I thought I didn't have to eat it until the serum dispersed?"

"Yeah, but when that time comes I might as well have it already on me," Phineas answered. "That way I won't have to go looking for it."

"But if the time comes and you don't have the pill ready for me to take… then what happens?"

Phineas thought for a moment, and responded softly, "You would get sick."

"…And I won't turn back human," Ferb concluded. "Then good thing you have that pill safely in your pocket."

"Yep!" Phineas answered cheerfully as he pulled out onto the road. "And I'm gonna keep it here all week and not let it out of my sight."

"But let's keep our goals near," Ferb returned as he repositioned himself sitting in the seat. "Right now, we need to start those five days."


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

The car rumbled down the highway towards the center of Danville. The vet's office where they normally took Perry wasn't a very large business, but still had their location in the middle of town.

As Phineas turned off onto their exit, the speed limit went down to a reasonable speed, and Phineas smiled sneakily as an idea entered his mind.

"Hey, Ferb," Phineas pestered, almost as if he was poking him with his words. "You should stick your head out the window!"

"What? I am not sticking my head out the window," Ferb denied.

"Aww, it'll be fun!" Phineas persisted.

"_First_ of all, if I stick my head out the window, my translator will fall off," Ferb clarified. "And _second…_ it's demeaning! I'm a dog, yes. I'm not ignoring that. But I don't have to act like one if I don't want t—"

It was then that Ferb's collar speaker made a little cracking sound and cut out in mid-word. Ferb tried to look down at it, before making a little questioning sound at Phineas.

"Hah, Ferb, I warned you that you'd wear the battery down on that thing," Phineas reminded him with an attempt at suppressing a laugh. Ferb gave him an unamused glare.

Phineas turned on to a smaller street as he kept driving. They were about five minutes away from their destination now.

"Well, there's no sense in going back home to get a new battery. We only had one Lithium Double-D 10 Volt," Phineas told him. The car approached the small parking lot of the vet's office, and Phineas stopped the vehicle to turn it off. Then, he gently reached over and slid the machine off of Ferb's head. Ferb felt strange, knowing that all he could do now was bark.

"The superstore has plenty of them, but they don't open for another hour," Phineas thought through. "So we have a few options."

Ferb cocked his head in an effort to make Phineas continue.

"The store is about another twenty minute drive, and by the time we've gotten back here, it'll be close to 10 already," was Phineas' explanation. "And by then, the vets might be too busy to fit us in."

Phineas had taken his hands off the wheel to sit in a more relaxed position, looking to Ferb with caring understanding. "We can either go inside now, or head to the store and come back later. It's up to you."

Ferb straightened up a bit, so he could see above the dashboard. He peered over at the sliding glass doors of the veterinary clinic, where some employees were just entering to start their day.

With a sigh, Ferb decided. He had said it before; the sooner they got the serum injected, the sooner his 107 hours would start. They would have plenty of time to buy batteries during the following five days.

So Ferb ducked his head out from under the seatbelt, and put his paws on the door handle. He turned over his shoulder to look at his brother, and gave him a resolved woof.

"Alrighty then!" Phineas answered, unbuckling himself and coming outside around the car to open Ferb's door. Ferb had leapt out and followed Phineas through the sliding door.

Upon entering, both of them noticed the obvious signs that the office had only just opened. The computers were just turning on, and several stock boxes were still open, their contents being organized along the shelves.

Phineas and Ferb both spotted one of the veterinarians coming out from a back room. They did not recognize her as Perry's normal vet, most likely because they never came this early for their platypus' appointments.

"Hello…!" she greeted when she noticed her clients in the waiting area. "My my, early today, aren't we? Have you brought him here for a routine checkup?"

"No, actually," Phineas said, reaching into his pocket. "We were wondering if you could do us a favor."

Pulling out the glass syringe that he had delicately placed in a plastic ziploc bag, Phineas showed it to the doctor. He explained, "I needed to give this to him, but I wasn't sure how to do it."

"Oh sure," she answered. "Come follow me into room 1 and we can get him on the table."

Ferb trotted close to Phineas' legs as the vet led them both into the back room. Immediately, Ferb hopped up onto the examination table and sat willingly still.

"Eager, isn't he?" she noticed. Ferb nodded.

Taking the plastic bag from Phineas, the vet grasped the syringe out of the bag and held it up. She questioned, "And which doctor prescribed it? He should have told you how to administer the medicine yourself, if he expected you to give it at home."

"Actually," Phineas started, putting his hands on his hips and standing proudly. "I made it myself."

Staring at him for a moment, the doctor just paused, then set her hand over her head and shook it. "You made it yourself… In your garage, probably?"

"Yep," Phineas confirmed, unfazed by her voice.

"I'm not going to put some teenager's high school science experiment in his dog," she declined, placing the cylindrical needle on the table. "I am a professional veterinarian."

Ferb took the syringe in his mouth, and had walked to the edge of the table to look up at her.

She stared back at him uneasily and shifted away, saying, "Do I dare ask… what was it you're trying to do to him?"

Phineas held his hand out to Ferb, who dropped the needle into his palm. Phineas showed it to the veterinarian. "It turns him into a human."

The vet relaxed and smiled, her next words coming in a tone that sounded like she was attempting to explain a simple concept to a six-year-old.

"Listen, I'm sure your dog likes being a dog just fine. Lots of kids want their dogs to be human, but a sugar-water concoction won't do that. If he gets turned into a human, how will your dog like not being able to chase tennis balls or find bones?"

Ferb grumbled. Phineas laughed.

"Hah no, Ferb doesn't want to chase tennis balls or find bones. Cause he's not supposed to be a dog, he's my brother." Phineas came over to the table and wrapped his arms around Ferb's neck.

"He's supposed to be a seventeen-year-old human being. He was a human on Tuesday," Phineas elaborated. Then he picked up the needle that he had left on the counter, and placed it in the vet's hand.

"But there was a little accident, and he got turned into a dog by mistake." Phineas pointed at the syringe that the vet now held curiously. "So I made that to turn him back."

"And what makes you think that this dog is really your brother?" she returned skeptically.

"Well, he's _obviously_ Ferb," Phineas said factually, pointing with his thumb out to the direction of the parking lot. "I mean, I was just talking to him in the car like five minutes ago."

"I suppose he was talking back, too?" the vet humored him.

"Yeah, I was trying to get him to stick his head out the window," Phineas giggled. He looked over to Ferb, who rolled his eyes. "But he told me that it was demeaning."

The doctor sighed. "Aaaand you're telling me he can speak English now."

"Na, dogs can't _speak_ English," Phineas nodded sideways. "Cause they don't have the right vocal chords and stuff. So we had a translator, but it ran out of batteries."

"Right," the vet replied with doubt. "So if I told him that he needs a bath, he would understand me."

She haphazardly glanced jokingly over to Ferb, but jumped back when she noticed that he was glaring at her with his ears down. He had his teeth bared as he let out a low growl.

"Oh don't worry, Ferb, she's just kidding," Phineas waved it off. "You smell like bed sheet fabric softener, actually."

At this, Ferb put his ears back up and repositioned his feet. His tail was strewn strangely behind him, and he looked back at the two others with a quite normal, curious expression.

"Wh-what's wrong with _him?" _the doctor asked in surprise. "Did… did he hear me?"

"Sure," Phineas answered. He slid a chair over to the table where he could sit in it and clutch Ferb tightly. He squeezed him close in a big hug as they both stared back to the veterinarian.

"Pleeeeaaaaseeee give it to him, Doc. I want him to go back to being my brother again."

Poking Ferb in the chest, Phineas added, "And Ferb misses having person fingers."

The doctor looked debatably to the syringe in her hand, then up to Ferb. She pointed cautiously at him. "He looks so eager sitting there, but he was just growling at me two seconds ago."

"Ferb's not gonna bite anybody," Phineas assured. He grabbed Ferb's jaw again and opened it a good two inches. Then, he stuck out one of his fingers and hovered it between Ferb's teeth. "See."

Ferb's tongue was hanging out lopsidedly from his mouth. But Phineas was right, and Ferb only gave an eye roll and snorted at him. He pulled backwards away from Phineas' finger so that he could close his mouth.

Yet, for good measure, he took the top of his head and nudged Phineas with strength, to send him teetering out of his chair and landing on the hard white floor.

"Hey!" Phineas called, pushing himself off of the tile. He apologized to the vet, "Sorry, my brother gets annoyed sometimes when I poke him too much."

She couldn't help but laugh, then looked down reluctantly to the needle Phineas had given her. She stepped forward murmuring, "Oh, I can't believe I'm doing this."

Jumping at the vet's words, Ferb immediately sped to the center of the table and sat down in a ready position. He pulled up his shoulders as the doctor grasped some of his fur. The needle and serum going in was a bit of a sting and a pinch, but it didn't faze him even slightly. He was finally starting the counter to be himself again.

"Thanks!" Phineas exclaimed, almost as soon as the doctor had pulled away. But she was still eyeing them both with expectant confusion, almost as if she thought there should have been a magical puff of smoke.

"Is it… working?" she said half-suspiciously.

"Yep!" Phineas replied, already snuggling Ferb with both arms. "But he won't be a human again for another few days. If you want, we can come back then and Ferb can thank you himself."

Ferb looked up at her and nodded appreciatively.

"Yeah, that would be… interesting," she answered.

"Okay!" Phineas promised, as Ferb hopped off the table and they both proceeded to walk out. "Bye, see you then! And thanks!"


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Walking out of the veterinary clinic's doors, Phineas and Ferb headed towards their car.

"Well that went well," Phineas commented as Ferb jumped into the side door and Phineas got in the driver's seat beside him. The translator was still lying carefully on the seat cushion.

The next stop Phineas was sure to make was the Superduper MEGA Superstore, that had everything from light fixtures to didgeridoos. He had no delays finding a Lithium Double-D 10 Volt in aisle 27 just as he had thought. He even found a new screwdriver that he could use to unlatch the battery compartment.

"Good as new," crackled Ferb's voice after Phineas had snapped in the cover and pressed the power button. He leaned back into the seat of the car and put his hands on his knees.

"Well, now we have lots of time," Phineas started. "What should we do?"

"Go back to the house?" Ferb suggested. "Though I don't know what we would do there."

"Yeah..." Phineas agreed. Then he jumped up in an idea. "But the park is fun!"

"The park?" Ferb asked in clarification. Then he paused for a moment. "You're not going to make me play fetch, are you?"

"Naaa, you don't have to," Phineas reassured. "But I'm sure there's tons of other stuff to do at the park."

Taking a moment to look to the corner of his eye in debate, Ferb conceded, "Some sun might be nice."

Ferb was right; when they left the parked car and walked their way over to the wide open grasses, the sky was bright blue and the green of the grass shone in the light. It was quite a nice day.

As they walked on the path, Phineas moved his head down to see Ferb following near his feet.

"You don't have to walk behind me," Phineas pointed out, slowing down slightly. Ferb looked upwards at the comment.

"Oh, sorry," Ferb replied, coming along beside him. But he was watching his paws as he placed each step in the gravel.

Once he had tipped his gaze up, Ferb saw the many other park goers who were walking casually past them. Ferb felt funny and self-conscious while he lowered his head and flattened his ears in discomfort. Everyone should have been staring at him and how different he looked, Ferb thought. But, as it was, the passing pedestrians saw nothing abnormal about a boy and his dog.

"...I used to be taller than everyone," Ferb mumbled. He kept his stare up, but his head low as he trotted alongside Phineas' legs. "...I liked it when I was tall."

"Cheer up, Ferb. You'll get your tallness back," Phineas promised. "You have human-changing serum running through your veins, and it's sticking on to your DNA as we speak."

"Where is the pill?" questioned Ferb anxiously.

Phineas patted the side of his pants purposefully. "Right here still safe in my pocket."

"Good," Ferb replied with a breath.

"And you're already down to 106 hours!" Phineas continued at him. "Doesn't that make you feel better?"

They had stopped walking and were standing near a fork in the path that led further into the open grass field. Ferb looked up. "Yeah, I suppose it does."

"So while we wait, you should have some fun," Phineas pestered him.

Slightly confused, Ferb said, "Like what?"

"I dunno. Something fun," Phineas repeated. "There's plenty of stuff a "dog" as smart as you can have fun with!"

Ferb glanced away from Phineas, and began to survey the park grounds. He spotted a wooden bench in the sunlight, with a young girl sitting on its seat. She seemed to be about a year or two older than Phineas and Ferb themselves, and had what looked to be a textbook on her knee.

"Some fun, you say?" Ferb elaborated. "Stay here, Phin. I'll be right back."

Ferb trotted through the long grass to approach the park bench. Deep in her studies, the girl did not glance up until Ferb was staring at her from the base of her feet.

"Oh, hi doggie," she greeted, looking away from her book. Her eyes went up to take a haphazard search for the owner.

"Hullo," the translator crackled as the little green light lit up on the metal contraption.

"Oh! It's a-talking dog?" she reacted in surprise.

"Yep," Ferb answered casually. He jumped up onto the bench to investigate her book.

"Doggie, you can talk?" she asked innocently. Ferb nodded in response.

The girl smiled. "Say 'apple.'"

"Apple," Ferb said.

She giggled. "Now say, 'Sawdust'."

Ferb cocked his head. "Why should I say 'sawdust'?"

The girl crept on another grin. "Sentences, too!"

Ferb poked his head over her shoulder at the thick white textbook. "What are you doing?"

"Aww, curious," she responded. Then she opened her text further and rearranged her notebook. "I'm doing summer math."

Ferb made a cute sound at her. "I like math."

"Oooh, you do?" she asked, intrigued. She scooted to face him. "What's two plus two?"

"Four," Ferb explained.

"Smart talking dog, you're good!" The girl thought for a moment. "What's two TIMES two?"

Ferb grinned. "Still four. That's not changing."

"Alright," she addressed. "Two plus a zillion."

Ferb's neck translator stayed silent for a moment, then it sounded, "A zillion and two."

Then Ferb stood up to look at the scribbles in the girl's notebook. She looked curiously at where his eyes were, before Ferb commented, "You know you don't have to hit it with L'hôpital's if you just divide everything by x to the third."

She froze. She looked down at her homework. She looked at Ferb. "What?"

"See, if you try L'hôpital's Rule, then you would have to use it three times, because the highest power of x in the numerator is cubed," Ferb explained over her shoulder. She just gave him a gaping blank expression.

"It would be a lot easier to just divide all the expressions in both the numerator and denominator by x squared. That way all the fractions with x's in the denominator go to zero, all the variables cancel out, and the entire thing just turns into five."

"You," the girl gasped. "Are one smart dog."

"It's not too difficult," Ferb replied modestly. "All you really need to know is that when you're in a limit going to infinity, one over x is zero. Then the rest is just simple algebra."

The girl had pulled out her expensive math calculator and typed some numbers in. Then she opened her eyes wider. "Woah, you're right. It really is five."

"Yep. If you want to save paper, graphite, and thirty minutes of your time, don't use L'hôpital's. Dividing through is a lot easier and quicker."

As the girl began to scratch her eraser over her homework, a shadow was cast over them. Ferb looked up and saw the figure of Phineas.

"There you are, Ferb. I was wondering where you went off to," Phineas greeted.

Glancing up from her notebook, the girl took a second's hesitation before pointing at Ferb and asking, "Is this your dog?"

"Umm well no, not really," Phineas thought. "Sorta-kinda."

With a subtle gesture to her textbook, she asked in bewilderment, _"Where_ did he learn College Calculus?"

"Oh, from our AP math course in school," Phineas waved it off. "He's really good, he doesn't even need the formula sheet that our professor provides for the test cause he memorized them all."

"Not on purpose, though," Ferb pointed out. Both of them turned to look at him as he said it. "I can just recall them easily so I don't bother to look them up."

"Aahh, you're just being nice," Phineas teased. "You know you have the highest grade in the class."

Ferb turned back to the girl and digressed, "But I'm sure you want to get back to your studies."

He hopped down off of the bench, saying, "You were right, Phineas. That was rather fun."

As he and Phineas proceeded to walk down the path, the girl thought about stopping the two of them to riddle them with more questions. Yet instead of calling them back, she could only sit in silence and scratch her head.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

The day stayed sunny and bright as Phineas and Ferb wandered the park. Ferb couldn't help but enjoy himself by casually greeting the surprised passersby.

"No fetch, huh?" Phineas pushed as they crossed the green field. "What about squirrel chasing?"

"I would prefer not," Ferb answered. But then he looked all up and down the surrounding trees. "Though if one crosses my path I might just have to jump on it. It might be constructive to know why there's so much hype about chasing squirrels."

The grassy park was bustling with summer activities. Some kids were flying kites in the distance, and people were snacking on hot dogs and soft pretzels from the stands surrounding. On a shallow hill near the tree's edge they spotted a group of young men playing a game of frisbee.

One of them caught a glimpse of the pair observing, and waved at them calling, "Hey man, sweet dog!"

Phineas nudged Ferb with his foot. Ferb mumbled in return, "No, Phineas. Frisbee counts as fetch."

"Maybe he can do us a favor," the man commented, seemingly having not heard their conversation as he approached them.

He pointed over to the border of the park. "We lost our frisbee over the fence, so we're having to use this one."

The faded and beaten-down disk in his hand was not in the best shape. He smiled at Ferb. "But I bet your dog could find our other one easy."

"Ferb likes being helpful," Phineas recalled. "Whadda ya say, Ferb?"

"I don't know," Ferb answered. "I don't really want to touch a frisbee with my mouth."

The frisbee player elbowed his friend who was standing next to him. "Check it out! That dog can talk."

"Well it's a new frisbee, right?" Phineas clarified without notice to their reactions. "It's not dirty."

"Yeah," the player answered. "It's a lot better than this ratty old thing."

"Alright," Ferb grudgingly agreed, leaving the group and heading his way over to the trees. The fence wrapped around the base of the tree line for a few hundred feet before turning and cutting further into the forest.

The trees above him made it slightly hard for Ferb to see the sky as he trudged along the bottom of the fence. Dirt was clumped up at the base of the metal wiring where it met the earth.

After walking for about two or three minutes, Ferb noticed that he could see the backyards and sides of a few houses on the other side of the barrier. He guessed that this was the end of the park, and he had entered into the start of a residential area.

Then he spotted a colorful circular object lodged under a fallen branch on the other side of the fence. Those players must have a very practiced arm to land it this far, Ferb thought.

Hopping up onto a fallen stump, Ferb prepared to make the leap over the fence. He crouched and aimed, before launching with his back feet towards the metal wiring. Though he did not clear it entirely, his front paws went over it and his back paws caught on the spaces between the wires, supporting him as he clung there on the top of the fence.

Managing to get one foot over the side, Ferb teetered dangerously as he attempted to maintain his balance. Eventually his center of gravity went too far over, and he came crashing down into the dirt and leaves on the residential side of the fence.

Standing up from his stumble, Ferb immediately noticed that he felt strangely lightweight and naked. Then he realized with a panicked jump that he no longer felt his translator resting safely on his neck.

Looking frantically back and forth, Ferb searched all around him. His eyes stopped fixedly on the grey metal device, settled in a pile of upturned earth. Then Ferb realized that he was staring at it lying on the other side, through the fence.

All thought of his previous job vanished from him; he had to get that translator back. Glancing upwards to the fence's top, Ferb imagined that it had fallen off of his head as he had scrambled over.

"Phineas!" Ferb barked as loud as he could, with the hopes that his brother might hear him. "Phineas? Phineas!"

Placing his paws between the holes in the fence, Ferb attempted to raise himself up the wall. But when he had made it halfway, his strength gave up and he was forced to release his grip.

With no stump fallen conveniently on this side of the fence, Ferb couldn't bring himself to make it any further than a foot from the top.

"Phineas, can you hear me?" Ferb called out into the forest after he had dropped back down. Though it came out as a series of barks, Ferb tried to holler nonetheless.

A light came on in the living room of one of the nearby houses. Ferb turned around and thought he saw a movement through a glass door.

"Hello?" he yelled. "I need some help!"

The shuffling sounds from the house only stayed indoors.

He thought about running along the length of the fence and searching for either a break in the chain links or some way to get someone's attention. But, Ferb regrettably decided that he couldn't leave his translator unattended in the grass, lest it get stolen or smashed or lost if he returned.

So Ferb thought that he could perhaps dig a space below the fence large enough that he could reach his paw through and grab the device. He hated the thought of having to dig a hole like he was burying a bone, but it was his best option at the moment.

Taking some clumps in his claws, Ferb began to sift through the soil, moving it away as he kept checking to see if it was large enough.

After a while of digging, Ferb had made a decent amount of headway as he leaned down to check the hole's size. Then he heard a crackle of leaves and branches from the forest behind him.

Ferb spun around to check the source. Coming out of the almost-shadowed underbrush, were two uniformed men. One of them reached out a finger and crouched low, pointing to Ferb. Ferb thought he heard the man whisper to the other, "There."

Ferb froze, and could think of nothing but opening his mouth to say, "Please, I need your help. I need that device that is on the other side of the fence."

"He's definitely our barker," one of the two commented as they both proceeded their way forward. It was then that Ferb noticed some of the equipment the men were carrying.

"Wh-what are you going to do?" Ferb asked hesitantly as he lowered his head and backed away from them.

"No tags," one said. "And his fur is ungroomed. Must be a stray."

"No!" Ferb argued as he threw his nose with exaggeration towards the fence. "I just need my translator, it's right over there!"

The men edged forward and drew their leashed stick and muzzle at the ready. Ferb found himself cornered into the side of the fence.

"It's all just a misunderstanding. Grab my translator and I'll explain the whole thing to you!"

"I can see what she meant by, 'There's a dog barking outside'," the uniformed man mentioned. "This one's a talker."

"It's right there! Lying in the grass ten feet from you!" Ferb squirmed as the leashed stick was placed around his neck. "Just turn around! Phineas! Phine-!"

His barks were muffled when the blue fabric of a muzzle was wrapped around his nose. Ferb still tried to argue through the silencer as he attempted to resist backing into the dark enclosure of the cage behind him.

* * *

"He's been in there a while," Phineas made known with a growing concern.

"We didn't think we had thrown it in too far," a player commented, also trying to peer into the shadowed trees.

"You... you guys can go back to your game," Phineas told him as he started to move forward. "I'm going to go look for him."

"Yeah, I guess we can always get a new frisbee," he replied sadly. "I'm sorry, man."

"I'm sure he's okay..." Phineas quietly told himself as he reached the trees' edge. He hollered, "Ferb?"

Phineas listened for any return from the dark trees, but the forest air stayed silent with no barks or running of feet through leaves.

"Ferb!" Phineas yelled again, looking all along the length of the fence as he walked alongside it, and peering over the other side. But Phineas saw no sign of his brother.

"FERB! Where are you?"


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

The metal kennel was far from comfortable, despite the blanket at the bottom that served no purpose. There was a bowl of... "food," in the corner that Ferb had no intention of touching. Regrettably, he did succumb to thirst after a few hours and took some of the water.

"My name is Ferb Fletcher," he called out loudly to the guard on a chair in the other room. "I am a seventeen year old human being and I'm _not supposed to be here."_

"Oh shush, you," the employee complained as, annoyed, he tossed a full water bottle through the door into the back kennel room in an effort to quiet him. Ferb stopped barking and watched the bottle roll along the concrete.

He looked up at the other animals in cages throughout the room. All of them were either sleeping or sitting quietly, bored. Ferb was the only one making a racket.

"My brother's name is Phineas Flynn," Ferb started up again. "He can explain the whole thing to you."

"Stop it, Dog. Barking will get you nowhere," the man whined.

"His cell is four eighty five, six two five two. Call him and he will come get me."

"Fine, bark all you want. You'll do nothing but rattle my eardrums and make yourself hoarse," the guard answered from the other room. "You've got your food, you've got your water. What else do you want? I'm not letting you out."

The employee got up and came to the bright doorway, so that Ferb could see him. The man grabbed the side of the door and started to close it. "It's late out and I'm going home. Do yourself a favor and go to sleep."

The sliver of light from the door shrunk and slimmed, until the whole room, and Ferb's cage, were left alone in blackness.

* * *

"You said you were at the park with him?" Isabella's voice asked from the other end of Phineas' phone.

"Yeah! He went off into the forest to be helpful and find a frisbee for somebody. But then he never came out," Phineas explained fretfully. "And I haven't seen him since."

Phineas was sitting on the living room couch that next morning, having called Isabella immediately when he had woken up. The previous day, after searching all over the park grounds, Phineas had been forced to retreat home, thinking that perhaps Ferb had made it back before him.

"Maybe Ferb decided that he wanted to go off and do something different?" Isabella suggested.

"If Ferb had wanted to go off and do something different, he would have definitely told me first," Phineas pointed out. "Hey, he would have probably offered to bring me along! No, wherever he is, I don't think he went there on purpose."

"You know I'll always help you out, Phineas," Isabella assured him. "Let's go back to the park and look around more. Is he still a dog?"

"Yeah. He'll be a dog still for another four days or so," explained Phineas. "But yeah, he could still be at the park."

Then Phineas paused for a second and stared distantly out the window. "Though I don't know why he would go and disappear like that."

* * *

"Ferb!" Isabella and Phineas both called out as they made it through the paths of Danville Park. "Feeerrrbbb?"

"Where was the last place you saw him?" Isabella asked in an idea.

"Over there by the fence." Phineas pointed towards where the frisbee had been lost the previous day.

Isabella led the way towards the designated area, and Phineas followed. "Maybe we can find out what happened to him."

They both started to walk alongside the edge of the fence, as it curved and cut into the trees. The afternoon air was quite shadowy beneath the canopy of leaves.

"And you're sure that this is where he went?" Isabella clarified.

"Yeah he was looking for a frisbee," Phineas mumbled in passing. The he exclaimed in fright, "He fell into a hole, I just know it! He fell into a hole and he can't get out. Ferb! Are you in a hole?"

Phineas stopped talking when he noticed the houses surrounding them. He commented, "Would he have went this far?"

"If he found the frisbee, then yes," was Isabella's reply. She drew out a finger to gesture past the fence. "I see it right over there."

Phineas' eye caught sight of the brightly colored object hidden under a tree. But he also caught sight of a glinting metal thing that was covered in dirt on his side of the barrier. He squinted at it.

"What is that thing?" Isabella asked, having also spotted it.

"I think it's Phineas started, walking towards it. Then, Phineas reached down and slowly pulled it out of the grass. Little pieces of dirt fell off of the crevasses in the metal as Phineas drug it up off the ground, dangling wires and all. He wrapped his fingers tightly around it as he grasped it close. He looked at the muddy floor and breathed.

"It's Ferb's translator. He... he doesn't have it on him."

Phineas looked up and around at the trees, fence, and houses. "And it's already after noontime."

Pulling the device in his palms tighter, Phineas fretted, "It's almost been a whole day since I've seen him last. Something's happened to him."

Isabella put a hand on her friend's elbow in an effort to console him. But Phineas continued his worried thoughts.

"Ferb knows the way to the house, if he could come back then he would've already. Something is stopping him from coming home."

* * *

The kennel room was brighter with the lights on and day staff filling the shelter rooms. Sounds of busy employees met Ferb's ears as he sat with his chin on his paws. He had given up on barking and complaining; nobody could understand him anyway, no matter how well he pleaded his case.

The other dogs were eagerly pressing against their cages. They had heard the same thing Ferb had: the sounds of new people entering through the outside doors. Soon their voices caught Ferb's attention.

"I don't know if I'm ready yet, David," a female voice said with a debating tone. "It's been only a week since we had to put our Sammy down."

"A new dog will be good for you," the second replied, just as he pushed his way through the doorway.

_What?_ Ferb thought, backing to the dark end of the cage. _No no no no no..._

The couple walked down to the far end of the cages, where several caged dogs began jumping wildly at them. A kennel employee was following them with a key.

"Martha, look at this one," the man named David pointed out, directing his wife's attention to a dog on the far end. "He's white and brown, just like Sammy."

"Mmm," Martha replied, hand on her chin as she continued to search past the cages. Ferb closed his eyes in an effort to make himself invisible.

"I like this one," came Martha's voice. It was strangely louder and closer than before, and Ferb dared to take a peek out from under his lids. He blinked them open and jumped: she had stopped in front of him.

"That one?" David asked doubtfully. He gestured to the rest of the room. "But there are plenty of other dogs just begging to come home with us."

"Yes, yes, anyone else but me," Ferb whined as he shuffled his feet further into the back wall of the cage.

"Ah. That one," the man with the keys commented. "He was found out behind the park after a barking complaint. No collar and no microchip, either. Doesn't look like he's ever been owned."

"He just looks like he needs a hug," Martha answered honestly after David and the shelter employee appeared next to her. Martha put a hand on the cage's bars. "He seems so sad and lonely in there."

"He does, doesn't he," David remarked. "You really want that one?"

"No! Not me," Ferb argued. He closed his eyes again and turned away. "I'm the only one in here who you _don't_ want."

"Everybody needs a hug from time to time," was Martha's reply.

"Alrighty," the man behind them finished as he drew out his keys and began to turn them in the lock.

"You don't want me!" Ferb moaned as he felt hands grab him. He tried to cling onto the blanket, but it just slid under his paws. "Pick one of the other dogs. Pick a normal one. Not me."

"Doesn't seem like he wants to go, does he?" David noticed. By now Ferb had ended up in Martha's arms, wriggling in an attempt at escape.

"We had a hard time getting him in there," the employee made known. "He squirmed all he wanted, but don't worry. He's never once bitten anybody."

The man gave a laugh. "That one's a fighter, not a biter."

After exhausting his strength, Ferb finally gave up and flattened his ears. He resonated a long, low growl from the back of his throat that made his protest known.

"...But I'll tell you what. You can take him home for a few days to see if things go well. If they don't, bring him back and we'll work something out," the man suggested as he came behind them to lock the empty cage once more.

"He'll warm up when we get him home, I'm sure," Martha decided, still keeping him safely in her arms.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

"Ferb needs our help!" Phineas shouted over his megaphone from his place standing on a cardboard box in their backyard. The crowd gathered beneath him consisted of the Fireside Girls and all of Phineas' friends, including others like Django and Irving. He had called everyone he could think of.

"Group 1, check the park again for signs of where he went," Phineas organized with a point. "And Group A, you spread around Danville and see if you can spot him anywhere."

The Fireside Girls gave a simultaneous salute, while everyone else showed agreeing nods and began to make their way out. Phineas hopped off his box, where he landed next to Isabella, Baljeet, and Buford.

"I sure hope this works, even though no one's seen what he looks like," Isabella worried.

"I told them what color his fur was," Phineas confirmed. "And even the part about it being green."

"But we have no pictures of him, Phineas," Baljeet remarked. "We can't make flyers."

"Anyone ever thought that maybe Ferb likes being a dog?" Buford mentioned. "What if he found a girl dog and they ran away together?"

"Buford," Baljeet started, skeptically. "We aren't in a movie with pixies and fairy godmothers. I highly doubt that happened."

"What? That's not what I meant, I wasn't implying that!" Buford defended quickly. "Is that where your mind goes first, Brain Boy?"

"IF Ferb wanted to stay a dog-which he told me himself he didn't-then he could have just asked me not to change him back. Ferb would never just run away," Phineas informed them. Then he reached into his pocket and gently pulled out the square box that he still kept at his side. He unlatched the lid and looked anxiously at the little pill inside.

"And I was extra careful to keep this really super safe for him. And now I don't even know where he is!" Phineas re-latched the lid and slid it back into his pocket. He looked upwards to the sky. "...If he doesn't get this before Monday at 7:30pm, he'll get sick and his serum won't work."

Isabella moved closer to him. "How sick, Phineas? Ferb will be okay even if we don't find him, right?"

"Yeah... but he would stay sick and be weak and tired and not-feeling-so-great for a while, a couple of weeks," Phineas responded softly. "And we wouldn't be able to give him another dose of the serum until he gets better."

"But he WILL get better?" Baljeet pushed. "Even if we don't find him now, we can change him back when we DO find him. It's not like he'll be a dog forever?"

"Na..." Phineas mumbled. "We'll get him back to human no problem..."

"You're still feeling down though, Phineas?" Isabella questioned gently. "Ferb will be okay no matter what happens, we just established that. Something else is bothering you, isn't it."

"I'm-I'm worried about what will happen to him if we wait too long to change him back," Phineas revealed. Buford responded with confusion.

"Why? Will he forget he's a human and start thinking he really is a dog or something?"

"Ferb is too smart to let that happen," Phineas replied. "He knows who he is, and changing his species isn't going to make him forget that. I'm worried about something totally different."

Isabella, Baljeet, and Buford cocked their heads in unison at him.

Phineas continued, "If this batch of serum doesn't work, Ferb's DNA would become resistant to it. A second batch wouldn't take 107 hours to settle, it would take closer to 300. Plus the month to take care of him until he gets better again. PLUS however long it actually takes to find him! It might be a few months before he's back to being himself."

"Does all that matter?" Buford asked. "He'll be a human again and that's all anybody cares about."

Phineas shook his head. "He'll be a human again, yeah. But dogs age faster than humans do. If Ferb lives and grows as a dog for say, three months, that would be the equivalent of aging 2.62 years as a human. If we turn him back then, he wouldn't be seventeen anymore. Ferb would come out being nineteen or twenty years old."

Stopping for a moment, Phineas shuddered. "He would be three years older than I am. He'd be closer in age to Candace than he would be to me. We wouldn't be the same-aged brothers anymore."

Caught up in his own thoughts, Phineas seemed to have forgotten about the people standing around him. He kept ranting on, "I bet if Ferb were twenty he'd be two or three inches taller, too. I'm already eight inches shorter than him! If he were any taller I probably wouldn't be able to talk to him way up there."

Breathing, Phineas wasn't finished. "And Ferb is so smart already, the school would bump him ahead a few grades. Then we would graduate separately and poor Ferb would have to go to college all alone! By the time I get there we would be three years apart in our classes and it would mess everything up.

"Not to _mention_ the fact that his driver's license and birth certificate would still say he was born seventeen years ago in 1998. Poor guy would have a heck of a time responding when somebody asks him how old he is."

Then Phineas put on his best Ferb impression. "'Oh, I'm twenty but I was born seventeen years ago.' What would people say to that? I don't want Ferb to have to go through that for the rest of his life."

"That's why we're going to find him," Isabella stated directly. "We'll find him before all that happens, Phineas."

"I dunno," Baljeet pointed out. "Danville is a huge city. Can was really cover the whole town in just three days?"

Isabella elbowed him hard in the chest. Baljeet squealed and almost fell over.

"I hope so," Phineas responded. "Or else Ferb won't get a year older on February 9th anymore, like he's supposed to. He'd turn twenty-one next year on a new birthday and not even Ferb himself would know what day it's on."


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

Ferb dropped down onto the floor of the two-story apartment. Martha and David had followed in and closed the door before Ferb could turn around.

The home was a cozy well-furnished area, and looked like it would belong to any normal couple. Ferb could see the kitchen through one door, the couch and television down the hall in front of him, and some steps leading upwards to where he assumed the bedrooms were.

"Do you like it, sweetie?" Martha asked. Then, realizing what she had said, she turned to David. "What do you think we should name him?"

"I have a name," Ferb piped up. "In fact, I have two. One of them is used so seldom it's not worth mentioning. The other is Ferb. I don't need a third."

"I can see what the shelter meant," David commented. "He really is a talker."

Then he addressed Ferb jokingly, "Well don't be doing that at night, buddy. Or we'll both be in trouble."

"We don't need to decide on a name just yet," Martha concluded, getting down on her knees beside Ferb on the wood floor. She was holding a red fabric collar with a little metal buckle. "We can just use old extra tags for now."

"Wait no, I'm not wearing that," Ferb denied, backing away. "I'm sorry, but I don't have any intention of staying here longer than today."

"Now now, don't complain," Martha said. She had wrapped one arm around him in a gentle restraint. "We don't want people to think you're a stray?"

"That's already happened once before," Ferb mentioned. "But these tags need _Phineas'_ number on them. That's where I belong."

Ferb tumbled out of her grasp when she released him, and felt the strange sensation of the thing on his neck. He would've rather had his translator. But, when shaking it did nothing, Ferb resolved to leave it be.

He made his way into the back rooms, looking for an open window… or any way out, for that matter. The couple followed him as he poked around in each room.

"He's investigating," Martha cooed. "He likes it here."

Ferb grumbled as he continued his searching. He didn't _not_ like it here, but he already had a home. He was supposed to be back at his own house, with Phineas and Candace and his parents. He wasn't even supposed to be a dog.

When his search both upstairs and down proved to be unfruitful, Ferb decided that his best shot would be to wait it out for now. He could sneak out the front door the next time it opened.

True, the phone number on his collar would prove problematic if someone spotted him, but any escape towards returning to Phineas would be an escape in the right direction. And if Ferb didn't get out before Monday, this Martha and David would be in for quite an unexpected surprise.

* * *

Phineas knocked lightly on his sister's bedroom door, poking his head in as he pushed on it. He spoke softly, not wanting to wake her up if she was still sleeping. "Hey, Candace? Can I ask you a favor?"

The bright Saturday morning sun rolled in through the window, as Phineas spotted Candace sitting on her bed reading a magazine. She looked up in response.

"What, Phine-?" she started. But Candace stopped her retort when she saw the look on her brother's face. She set her magazine on the bedspread beside her. "Is something wrong?"

"Yeah, I was at the park with Ferb and he went to go get a frisbee," Phineas started as he came in. "And that was on Thursday and now I can't find him anywhere…!"

"Wait, you mean 'Ferb' that dog?" Candace clarified. Phineas nodded at her.

"Mmhmm. I got Isabella and Baljeet and Buford and almost everyone else out looking for him, but we haven't found anything," Phineas told her sadly. "I haven't seen him in almost two days and I'm really getting worried about him."

"You're getting all worked up about a silly dog?" Candace reacted to Phineas' words. She asked, "I thought you were looking for his owner anyway? Maybe he went back to his home."

"I… don't understand what you mean, Candace," Phineas replied with uncertainty. "Ferb doesn't have an owner, he lives here with us. He's your brother, too."

"Ferb… _is_ the dog?" Candace gasped at him slowly, then quickly. "Mom told me it was a dog that you _named_ 'Ferb'!"

Candace looked to the corner of the ceiling in contemplation. "Well THAT would explain why I haven't seen him lately. When Mom asked me where he was, I just told her that he was out doing some crazy thing with you. We both thought it was all a big random coincidence that we hadn't ran across him. When did he get turned into a dog?"

"On Tuesday," Phineas answered.

Candace breathed, and then a thought struck her that had not been present when Phineas first explained it to her. She put the facts together and asked, "So Ferb… our brother… has seriously been _lost_ for two days?"

Phineas stuttered and nodded again. "I-I can't find him anywhere, Candace! So, I was wondering if you could do me a favor…."

His sister repositioned to look at him. "Anything, Phineas. I want to see him back, too."

Phineas gave her a little smile and continued with his request. "I thought about checking the Danville Animal Shelter. But when I called them, they wouldn't tell me anything unless I had somebody over eighteen with me."

"Of course I'll drive over there with you, Phineas," Candace agreed, standing up. "Come on and I'll get the keys."

* * *

After a short ten-minute drive, Candace stopped the car and Phineas stepped out. She followed him in as they entered the doorways of the local shelter. A girl was sitting behind the desk, filing paperwork.

"Hi..." Phineas started, approaching. "I'm looking for a..."dog"."

"Okay," she answered softly, pulling up the papers and aligning them. "What was the name on his collar?"

"Oh um, he didn't have one," Phineas replied, putting his hands on the counter.

The girl looked at him with befuddlement. "Your dog didn't have a name?"

"No, no I meant he didn't have a collar," Phineas corrected unenthusiastically. "He wouldn't like wearing those."

"... Did he have any other form of identification?" she requested. "There's no way to keep record if he was ever here if he had no type of ID. Do you at least have a picture of him?"

Phineas frowned and looked at the tile under his feet. "No... I should've thought of that...! I mean, we can't even make flyers, Candace!"

"We'll find him, Phinny," Candace assured him. She turned to the clerk. "Can we at least go in the back and see if he's there?"

"Sure," the girl replied, getting up to show them into the back kennel.

All the dogs immediately started barking when they saw new faces, but Phineas ignored them all; he was looking for just one.

He looked into each cage. He found a white dog, a black spotted one, even a few brown ones. But he recognized none of them, and none of them recognized him.

Finishing his slow walk, Phineas turned around at the end of the line. "...He's not here."

"I can't be of much help, then," the girl mentioned. "But pets don't last forever... There are plenty of other dogs here, who you can look at when and if you're ready."

"What!" Candace exclaimed, clutching Phineas and wrapping her arms protectively around him. "That's a horrible thing to say!"

"He's not my dog, okay?" Phineas shouted from under his sister. "He's my brother and he _can never be replaced!"_

Candace let him go as he trudged out of the room. She gave a disappointed glare behind her, before following him.

"I'll find him before Monday," Phineas was saying. "I just have to."


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

Even with Baljeet, Buford, and Isabella there, the backyard was rather empty without Ferb. Phineas felt even worse when he realized that he hadn't actually _seen_ his brother's face since the accident on the 23rd.

After Candace had dropped Phineas off again at the house, he had headed outside to meet his friends and see if they had made any headway.

"Nothing," Isabella reported dismally. "And Buford and Baljeet just finished telling me that they had no luck near the post office, either."

"He's wasn't at the shelter," Phineas moaned.

"There's still places we haven't checked," Isabella told him. "How about the supermarket? I bet one of the customers there has seen him. Lots of people go by there every day."

"Everyone else is still out looking, too," Baljeet reminded him. "We'll find him if we just keep searching."

* * *

"You're not hungry, guy?" Martha asked gently as she stroked Ferb's back. Ferb was staring distantly at the bowl of dog food in front of him.

"Sure I'm hungry," Ferb answered longingly. "I haven't eaten anything since Thursday two days ago."

He huffed with a breath of air at the bowl. "But I know better than to eat... that. There's no way I'd be able to keep it down even WITH a dog's stomach."

"David, he won't eat his food," Martha said with concern as she stood up. She kept her hands around the dog food bag and her gaze fretfully on the figure of Ferb on the floor. "I hope he's okay."

"Maybe he doesn't like hard food?" David suggested. Martha glanced downwards again and attempted to nod.

"Yeah... maybe he would rather have the canned stuff," Martha agreed. "I'm willing to try it if it'll make him feel better. I don't know where he was before here, but I want him to feel as comfortable as possible."

David agreed in response. "I have to head out, though, so if you go shopping you'll have to take him with you. We shouldn't leave him alone on the second day."

Afterwards, Ferb overheard that David was going to take public transit to work. Martha had already grabbed her car keys and purse by the time David had left.

"Come on, buddy. We're going for a car ride," she tempted Ferb as she reached for the door handle.

_Now's my chance..._ Ferb thought. The door was finally opening once more, and he could make a break for the exit.

Martha's hand was already halfway turning it. Ferb crouched low to the ground. He squinted his eyes and aimed in preparation.

As soon as the doorway was cracked and the brightness of the hall light snuck through the sliver, Ferb had leapt his feet off the hardwood floor and sprinted towards it. His front paws had cleared the moulding, when he was stopped in his tracks by a snatch on his collar.

"Hey hey!" Martha had called, disallowing him with a pull backwards. "You're part of the family now. You can't just go running off like that."

Ferb lowered his ears, and found himself feeling horrible. It was partly because his attempt at escape had failed. But it was also because he had realized that Martha honestly thought he was her dog. He wasn't, he really wasn't.

Martha had clipped a leash to the top of his collar by the time she stood up. She repositioned her purse under her arm as she stepped down the carpeted apartment hallway. Ferb got up reluctantly as he trotted alongside her feet as they headed down the steps towards where the car was parked outside.

Soon, the vehicle had rolled to a stop in front of a colorful brick building. It was situated in a little corner of a strip mall across from a nearby grocery store. Unlike other dogs, Ferb could read. He knew why they were stopping at this place.

"My Sammy used to love coming here," Martha reassured him as she turned the car off and grabbed Ferb's leash, leading him out of the side door. "They'll take good care of you while I go run some errands. I'll be back in a few hours, don't you worry."

After Martha had dropped him off, Ferb was led into a back room with some cages. They were large, roomy, and well-prepared cages, but cages nonetheless. They had comfortable pillows, toys, and anything a dog would need to occupy itself for a few hours.

The person leading him directed him into the bright, somewhat-inviting kennel and closed the bars. Ferb moaned sadly and set his head on his paws; upon first looking, he saw no ease of escape from this place. Instead, he closed his eyes and foresaw hours of boredom and longing ahead of him.

* * *

Martha pulled the car into the parking lot of the local grocery store, reaching into her purse to look over her list. She had to replenish the supply of cereal, which David always liked to snack on before work. Also on her list were a few ingredients for making a casserole, which she planned to use later that week. And of course, she was also there to pick out a new brand of dog food for her poor starving puppy.

Shutting the car door behind her, Martha headed towards the store. First, she made her way to take a cart, but was stopped in the process of pulling it out.

"Hello," a red-headed teenager addressed her as she turned to look at him. He had on a disheveled expression. "I'm... looking for my brother. He's missing."

"You've lost your brother?" Martha returned, concerned. "Why, that's horrible! How long has he been missing?"

"For about two days now," the boy answered sadly. "I really miss him..."

"Poor thing. Is there anything I can do to help? What's his name?" Martha suggested as she turned away from her half-pulled-out cart to better talk to him.

"Well, his name's Ferb Fletcher, he's seventeen. After what happened he has brown hair now..." the red-head described. Then he waved his hand upwards. "But it still grows as green!"

"It grows as green?" was Martha's confused answer. She marveled, "That's quite unique."

The distressed boy shuffled his feet as he looked at them. "Ferb's a unique guy..."

Martha couldn't stop her hugging nature as she reached over to him. When she pulled away, she was almost on the verge of tears as she promised, "I'll definitely be sure to keep an eye out for you. Good luck finding him, I really hope you do soon."

"Thanks," the teenager answered as he watched Martha walk away. "I hope so, too."


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

Ferb had lots of things on his mind as he sat in the kennel. The other dogs around him were happily playing with toys alone or with workers. Some of the animals were chewing on bone treats or filling themselves with dog food.

But Ferb sat quietly with his tail around his feet. After only the first hour, the workers had learned to realize that Ferb was the single dog in there who couldn't care less about squeaky toys and playful shenanigans. So they just left him alone to his thoughts.

Of course, the first thing Ferb missed was Phineas. He hadn't seen his brother for so long, it felt. Phineas was the only one who understood him as a dog, and without him there to matter-of-factly point out that Ferb still had a human's mind... Everyone treated him as nothing more that someone's pet.

The second thing Ferb missed, as he sat awkwardly with his dog-feet under him, was himself. He missed his usual "freakishly long legs," as Phineas had put it. And if being a dog had taught him one thing, it was how irreplaceable opposable thumbs are. Each time he looked down and saw nothing but paws at the ends of his arms, Ferb felt a pang of regret. It escalated when he remembered that Monday was approaching quicker than he had expected.

Ferb's dog-ears perked up. He had heard a quite peculiar sound that he first thought was his imagination. It started with a jingling bell that was attached to the front door. Then it continued with a muffled conversation behind the wall. Finally, Ferb could make out the voice.

"I don't get why we're checking in here, Nerd," a very familiar voice complained.

"We're looking for a dog, right?" the high-pitched sound of his friend replied. "This place has lots of dogs."

Then Ferb caught sight of the two teens, one husky and one thin, coming into the room. Ferb leapt off his feet and pushed himself against the cage bars.

"Guys! Baljeet! Buford! It's me, Ferb!" he yelled as his friends started looking around casually.

"But this is where _people_ put their _pet dogs."_ Buford pointed out. "Why would he be here?"

Ferb kept trying to get their attention through as loud of barks he could manage, but it seemed as though they could not hear or distinguish him against the rest of the roomful of loud, playful dogs.

"Why didn't you complain about it on the way over here?" Baljeet mentioned. "We're here NOW, so we _might as well_ go ahead and check."

Starting to survey the room, Baljeet gave an uneasy laugh. "Though I have no idea how they even let us back here. I can't believe they actually bought your... Tick Inspectors story."

"Don't underestimate the persuasion powers of Buford," Buford replied.

"Guys! GUYS! It's me, I'm right down here!" Ferb pleaded at them. Buford elbowed Baljeet beside him.

"Well Phineas said we're looking for a brown dog." Buford had tossed a finger towards Ferb. "That one is barkin' at you like there's no tomorrow."

"Phineas also said his hair would be green at the roots," said Baljeet, also turning to look at Ferb. He paused for a second.

At this, Ferb had spun around and pressed his fluffy side against the bars, letting the fur come through. "Yes, yes it's me, guys! You can go ahead and check."

"Well, go on," Buford pushed. "Check and see if he's green."

But Baljeet had scrunched his hands up near his chest as he stared down at him. "But... but what if it's not him, and he takes my finger off!"

"Fine, then. Let me do it," Buford conceded, dropping down to the floor. He drew out his thick fingers and sorted through the fur.

Baljeet had appeared beside him, and squinted his eyes as he couldn't help but lend his own fingers to search through.

"Hey, look!" Baljeet exclaimed with a jump back and a point. "Green fur!"

Then he bent over and gasped at the dog in the cage. "Are you Ferb?"

Ferb turned his head over his shoulder to look at them, and nodded with exaggeration.

"We found him, Buford," Baljeet reacted. "We just found Ferb!"

"Well yeah, but how do we get him out?" came Buford's response. "Think of something, Smart Guy. The cage is locked."

"Maybe there are keys around here, somewhere," Baljeet started, as he searched around the walls.

"What are you doing?" one of the workers noticed. "That's not your dog."

"We're umm," Baljeet explained, standing up straight and stiff beside Buford. "We're umm, the Tick Inspectors."

"Tick Inspectors?" the worker replied with doubt. "You're like, sixteen."

"We're _seventeen,"_ Buford retorted, but stopped himself. He corrected, "But... we just wanted to look at this one dog."

"Only the dog's owners are allowed back here," the employee stopped them, leading them out the door.

"Wait, let them back! They're my friends!" Ferb called out, attempting to press himself against the bars as he watched them pushed out.

Baljeet leaned back and shouted, "Don't worry, Ferb! We'll find you again!"

The thick door was closed behind them, and after a second of staring and breathing, Ferb retreated back to the middle of the cage and sat down on the blanket. The loud sounds of the other dogs in the room around him gave no help to his predicament.

After only two seconds of seeing his friends again, he had once again been left alone in an unfamiliar place. He had been that close to going home.

* * *

Once Martha was finished with her shopping, she stopped by to pick up her dog on her way back to the apartment. Though Ferb kept a watchful eye for escape during the ride, no opportunities presented themselves.

When he heard the front door lock behind him, Ferb came to the realization that leaving the house of Martha and David might not be as easy as simply running away. They were coming to expect that he would be their pet from now until the end of his life.

Kind, though they were, Martha and David were not his family. Ferb didn't need to be getting belly rubs, he needed to be in high school. He needed to be studying for tests, doing homework, and doing teenager things. He didn't need to be waiting for the next time he was fed.

Right now, he needed to be spending _summer vacation_ with his brother. And instead, he was cooped up in the house of a couple in need of a dog. They needed a dog who wasn't Ferb.

"Is that any better?" Martha asked gently. "Go ahead and eat, buddy. I don't want you to starve."

A bowlful of glop was set in front of him as Ferb stared at it. He felt his stomach growl loudly.

_You're hungry, Ferb,_ he heard himself think. _You haven't eaten _anything. _ It can't be that bad._

He tried not to breathe in the smell as he opened his mouth. He closed his eyes, stuck out his tongue, and poked the pinkish mass. But then he caught a whiff, and recoiled backwards in disgust.

"No, no, I'm sorry. I honestly gave it a try," Ferb apologized as he eyed it from a distance. "But I just can't get myself to do it, no matter how hungry I am."

Martha watched him as he backed away. She frowned.

"How about these, huh?" she suggested as she pulled out a colorful foil bag of dog treats. "These were Sammy's favorites."

"You know the funny thing is," Ferb commented as he looked up at the bag. "Is that regular dogs like those because they taste MORE like fish than their food does. Which, regrettably, is precisely the reason why I would rather not have them in my mouth."

"Well, we've got 'speak' down like a charm," Martha observed. "Can you roll over?"

"Yes, Martha, I _can,"_ Ferb explained. "I understand the command perfectly fine. Yet, I don't plan on rolling over."

"There he goes, barking up a novel again," Martha showed to David as he came in the room. She glanced back down at Ferb. "It would be interesting to know what he's trying to say."

"If I could speak English, I would first tell you that I'm sorry, and I have to leave," Ferb made known from his place on the carpet. "And then I would ask you to please find it in your heart to bring me home."


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

"We found him!" Baljeet called out with waving hands as he and Buford entered in through the backyard's gate. "Phineas, we found him!"

"You did?" Phineas exclaimed, looking left and right. "Where is he?"

"Well, we couldn't actually rescue him," Buford pointed out. "Because his cage was locked. But he was at one of those doggie day care places."

"But Phineas," Baljeet mentioned. "The worker there told us that he had an owner."

"You're positive it was him?" Isabella requested. "It could have just been somebody's pet."

"We're... pretty sure," replied Baljeet. "He had the green fur, like Phineas said. Not too many dogs have that."

Buford pushed Baljeet aside to offer his own observation. "And when we asked him if he was Ferb, he nodded. A lot."

"It MUST'VE been him!" Phineas concluded. "All day we've been looking under bushes and behind buildings, when he's been inside someone's house this whole time!"

"At least now we know he's okay," came Isabella's reassuring voice. "See, Phineas. He didn't fall in a hole. I'm sure that whoever took him is really nice and is keeping him safe."

"Yeah, but I want him home here with me," Phineas said sadly. "...As a person."

Then Phineas drew out a palm, and held it flat, eight inches above his head and looked at it. He still had on a frown as he spoke. "That's where he's supposed to be."

He turned back towards Baljeet and Buford. "Do you have any idea where he might have went afterwards?"

"Sorry, Dude..." Buford murmured. "They shuffled us out of there in a hurry."

"Well tomorrow is Sunday," Phineas sighed, looking distantly out to the front yard. "We only have a little more than a day and a half left."

* * *

Morning at Martha and David's house was like morning anywhere else. Besides the fact that Ferb woke up on a dog bed.

Martha was heading out again, this time to do flower shopping. But today David had the day off from work, and was staying home to watch over their new dog.

But as David waved goodbye to his wife, Ferb noticed him slide a single key off the ring by the front door. He was pushing his feet into his shoes.

Ferb grew attentive, and watched David's movements. He was using slip-on shoes, and hadn't bothered to put on socks. He was going to get the mail.

Ferb's heart started to pound. He would be alone in the house. For five minutes, but alone nonetheless.

What could he do? Try to escape? No, he had tried that several times before, to no avail. Write them a note? No, he would need opposable thumbs for that.

But the phone. The phone was sitting on the kitchen table within easy grasp.

Ferb leapt into a chair, and knocked the device onto the floor. It rolled with a bounce, but stayed unharmed. Dropping down next to it, Ferb somehow managed to draw out a claw and press down a few numbers.

Walking through the Danville streets with his friends beside him, Phineas hollered at the top of his lungs, "Feeerrrbbb?"

He huffed loudly and commented, "Do you think he can even hear us through the walls if he's in one of these houses?"

"It's worth trying," Isabella answered.

Then Phineas felt a vibration in his pocket and heard the ringing song of his cell phone.

Baljeet leaned curiously over. "Who is it?"

Phineas reached down and drew out his phone. He flipped it open and looked at the number. "Nobody that I recognize."

"Answer it anyway," Buford told him. "My mom got these white doilies from an infomercial phone call that she uses now all the time."

Everybody stopped and stared at Buford, as Phineas' phone kept chiming in his hand.

"What? She likes them..." he replied quietly. Then he straightened dominantly and pointed hard at the cell phone. "Just answer it, Dinner Bell."

Phineas shrugged, and pressed the accept button, holding it to his ear. "Hello?"

He had to pull it away from his head as a loud barking erupted from the other side. Phineas' face got a look of realization. "It's Ferb!"

"You can recognize his barks now?" Baljeet asked, curiously.

"Well, no. It sounds like any other dog's bark to me," Phineas replied. "But I mean really, what other dog would call me on my cell phone just to bark at me?"

Phineas put his ear back on the phone and listened. He scrunched up his face in frustration.

"Ferb, bro, slow down. I have no idea what you're saying!" Phineas interrupted him. Then he turned to Baljeet saying, "Run home and grab the translator! Maybe it'll work through the phone."

Baljeet nodded and turned around to sprint in the opposite direction.

"Ferb! Where are you, man?" Phineas fretted on the line. Ferb gave a bit of an impatient groan. Phineas replied, "You're right, I know, I don't know why I asked you that."

But Ferb still couldn't stop himself from continuing his barking, directed at his brother. Phineas fidgeted in place as he tried to contain himself.

"Oohhh! I bet he's giving me directions and street names and numbers and everything right now! I seriously can't understand you, Ferb!"

But then Ferb's barking stopped. Phineas could hear a rustling as the phone was handled. Then a man's voice came through.

_Hello? Is there somebody on the phone?_

"Ummm, yeah. Hi?" Phineas replied. "Who is this?"

_This is David. How did you get this number?_

"Oh I didn't call," Phineas explained. "Ferb called me."

_Ferb?_ David responded. _There's nobody here by that name. You must be mistaken._

"What? No, I was just-" Phineas tried to reply.

_I'm sorry that I can't help you. You have a wrong number._

The dial tone resonated mockingly in Phineas' ear. He pulled off his phone and left it sitting in his hand.

A couple of minutes later, Baljeet reappeared after a sprint, panting and sweating with his hands on his knees. He collided the translator he was carrying into Phineas' shoulder as he stood up.

Phineas turned around and took the device in his free hand. Baljeet looked with heavy breaths and silent confusion at the closed cell phone.

"No luck, Baljeet," Phineas answered dejectedly. "Ferb was using somebody's house phone, and they misunderstood us."

"Try pressing redial," Isabella suggested. "You have the number there in your phone's recent calls."

Ferb heard the house phone ringing from its place on the kitchen wall. He jumped up to look at it. "David! David! Come pick it up, it's Phineas again!"

David came over and looked at the number. He sighed when he realized that it was the same one he had just hung up. "Poor kid is never going to reach whoever he's trying to call, if he keeps ringing my house."

He picked up the phone and held it up. After a moment, he replied, "No, I told you, this is David. Whoever gave you this number wrote it down wrong. … No, I'm sorry. I do hope you reach him, but he's not here."

David clicked the device back onto the receiver, and walked away into the back room. Ferb pushed his head against the floor in frustration. Would his brother ever find this one house in the whole city of Danville?


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

Monday. Yes, it was Monday. The infamous Monday morning sun warmed Ferb's nose as he opened his eyes off the bed that sat in the kitchen corner. Martha and David were both already bustling around him as they prepared for the day.

"You don't have to work until 9am today, honey?" Martha asked in passing, as she buttered a slice of toast.

"Yep, not for another two hours," David replied, his mouth half-full with a spoonful of cereal.

Martha gestured to Ferb, who was still lying on the puffy cushion, as she walked past him. "Can you give him a walk before you go? I think he's comfortable enough to be shown the block."

"Sure thing," he answered, slurping up the milk and putting the finished dishes in the sink. He snatched the leash from its place on the coat rack, and addressed Ferb. "Where should we go, boy?"

"Are we taking requests?" Ferb whined, lifting his chin. "I'd like to go to Maple Drive, please."

But David only heard Ferb's noise and thought nothing of it's meaning. He opened the front door after he had clipped on the leash. "Once around the neighborhood, then."

Ferb trudged out the door unenthusiastically. The streets were lined with a few houses and tall buildings, but Ferb frowned when he recognized none of them. Without bearings to get him straight, he couldn't tell where in Danville any of these streets were.

The brisk air ruffled his fur, making him uncomfortable. It was bad enough that he even _had_ fur to begin with, and he dipped his nose with a whining moan when he remembered that 7:30 tonight was when his serum would have worked. If he had been safe at home with Phineas, that was. He could have been looking forward to losing his tail and having his own feet again this evening.

But no, come eight o'clock tonight, he would be lying—as a dog—sick in a bed that wasn't his.

The street that Martha and David's apartment building sat on looked different from his own Maple Drive. The walls were close together, and it looked like a more commercial area than the residential one Ferb and Phineas lived in.

The line of tall company buildings or small businesses was occasionally broken by a few houses. Several of these had dark alleys between them.

David led Ferb along the block as they passed building after building, turning a corner near one made of red bricks. A disgusting smell hit both David's and Ferb's noses.

"Ugh, I hate walking by here," David commented out loud.

"Smelly rubbish…" Ferb returned with a bark as they walked past an alley filled to the brim with black trash bags.

David stopped moving and just stood in front of the alley, peering up and down the mountain of bags. He lightly chuckled with surprised confusion. "That was odd..."

"What was?" Ferb asked curiously as he came by his side and looked up at him. Then Ferb reacted by jumping off the concrete sidewalk when, a few seconds later, he heard a crackling voice through static coming from beneath the pile.

_What was?_

"Hello...?" David suspected. "Uhh...Is someone under there?"

Ferb leapt upwards and approached the black trash bags. "Did that just-?"

Now that he was closer, the crackling voice took shorter to reply. _Did that just-? _

"It did!" Ferb exclaimed, following the sound and ignoring the smell, sticking his face beneath one of the bags. Soon, he had drawn out a square box with a few wires attached to it. He held it in his mouth, when David took it from him.

He was eying it with investigation, before thinking to himself, "Someone threw away their radio?"

"No," Ferb barked, as he hopped up towards the device. "It's me talking, it's my old translator!"

"Right," David answered with skepticism, looking all around the alley. He said factually, "My dog's not talking."

"Yes, I am," came Ferb's voice again through the speaker.

"Ah! Randy, it's you isn't it?" David concluded, looking at the box. "You're getting back at me for that thing about the pen. Are you nearby in a bush or one of the buildings?"

"No, it's me. I'm sitting here by your feet!" Ferb barked again, and the translator rang out.

"Though how you got him to bark on cue is beyond me," David observed as he looked down at his dog.

"Listen. My name is Ferb Fletcher, and I'm supposed to be a human being," Ferb's voice in the box informed him. "I need you to call my brother! He's worried about me and he needs to get here, soon!"

"Hah Randy. Nice story, but puppies have cell phones now?" David returned with an amused laugh. He clearly still thought he was talking to his coworker.

"No. My brother's not a dog, he's a human!" Ferb pleaded as he ran around David's feet to get his attention. "You just talked to him on the pho-!"

But then the rusted metal box sparked and stopped emitting sound. Ferb moaned and dug his forehead into the concrete. The thing had been sitting in their garage for seven years; it was only a matter of time before the wire connectors had corroded.

"Well, you know I'll be late for work if I don't get home soon," David spoke into what he thought was a radio. "Thanks for the laugh, Randy! You got me good."

Ferb groaned at him and his ignorance, leaving the sidewalk by the alley and trudging their way back towards the house. But it wasn't David's fault, Ferb told himself. Who would believe only the word of a talking dog?

* * *

After dropping Ferb off at the house, David had headed to work. Now Ferb sat sprawled out on the living room carpet, as the hours passed by.

"You're feeling sad?" Martha asked as she came by to sit beside him. She had been laboring in the kitchen all afternoon, and had just put her casserole in the oven. Ferb blew a puff of air out as he stared nowhere in the distance.

Martha petted him on the back. "You can tell me all about it."

"Well, I'm sad about lots of things," Ferb started. "For one, I miss my own house, and my bed, and doing projects in my backyard."

Ferb rolled over on his side to stop Martha from petting him. "I miss my dad, and my mom, and Candace. And I miss my brother."

Pausing for a second, Ferb waited as Martha kept looking at him. He sighed sadly and continued, "But most of all, I miss being myself. I wish I had hair on my head, ears on the _side,_ and arms that were longer than my body. My own self isn't even in the mirror anymore.

"…I suppose the old me only exists now in photographs," Ferb realized. He looked upwards at Martha, and said softly, "You would've liked me. I think I was taller than David."

He set his chin on his paws again. "…Just by an inch."

"…I love it how you bark like it's in sentences," Martha watched him. "I've never seen a dog bark like that."

Then they both glanced upwards to the front hall when a click in the lock was heard. Martha leaned around to peer behind the opening door. "Oh hi, David."

She turned to look at the clock in the kitchen, and commented, "Back from work, is it 5:30 already? Time sure does go by fast."

Ferb kept his distant stare at the wall. "You have nooooo _idea."_

"Well, I was just talking with our buddy, here," Martha let him know, pointing down to Ferb as she stood up.

"Talking with him?" David asked curiously, putting his coat on the rack near the door.

"Yep, he barks like he's trying to talk English. Like he thinks we can understand him or something," she speculated. "It really is pretty cute."

"That reminds me," David started as he came over to sit on the couch. "One of the boys at work played a trick on me this morning, with him."

David laughed as he made some hand gestures. "He had hidden a radio on the side of the street and talked into it so that it sounded like the dog was talking!"

Martha giggled into her hands. "That's so funny! It was Randy, wasn't it? He's always doing things like that to you."

"Pretty sure, though I asked him at work and he swears he didn't."

Martha breathed with another laugh. "Just like Randy. What did he make him say? Did he like the walk you were giving him?"

"No, actually…" David thought. "He didn't really say any dog-like things at all. He said something about being a human, and his brother…?"

"Oh…" Martha answered sadly; it seemed that something had occupied her mind. "Is everyone missing their brothers lately?"

"What do you mean?" David questioned, leaning up from the couch.

"Oh, you just reminded me of a boy I met at the supermarket the other day," Martha explained. "He had lost his brother."

"Phine…" Ferb mumbled. He had no energy to say anything more. "Phine… was there… Nobody… told me… that…"

"I wonder what happened to the boy's brother. I hadn't stopped to think about it until now," Martha kept speaking. "Ooohh, I really do hope that they found him. It absolutely breaks my heart to hear stories like that."

"I sure hope so, too," David commented. He was deep in thought as he added bleakly, "It's so sad to know that half the time they never do."

"And the poor boy seemed so distraught." Martha fought to wipe away tears. "I bet they were close."

"We…" Ferb moaned, "… were close."

"It hurts to know that there's nothing we can do about it," Martha moped. "They probably had the whole town out looking. What could just two more people do?"

Then the timer on the kitchen stove let out a shrill beeping sound. Martha stood up from the couch in reaction, telling David that dinner was almost ready, and headed into the kitchen.

The tops of Ferb's ears twitched a bit at the buzzer, but his mind was spinning and he had let his clouded brain zone out of the room long ago.


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

Phineas was pacing all up and down his bedroom. A computer running a homemade program was open on the desk beside him, as Phineas ran his fingers on his face. Candace stood in the doorway and watched with concern as her little brother fretted over nothing in the world except for Ferb's whereabouts.

"It's six FIFTEEN, Candace!" Phineas was saying. "Only a little more than an hour! I put all the numbers into the computer five or six more times, and it's _definitely_ been 105.75 hours already! I bet Ferb is getting sick right now, and I'm not there next to him!"

"Calm down, Phinny," Candace comforted. "Let's go over it again. What do we know about where he is?"

Taking a few deep breaths, Phineas looked up at his sister, who had her hand on his shoulder. He tried to think as he organized his thoughts. "Well… we know he's at somebody's house. And when he called my phone it sounded li—"

"Wait," Candace stopped him. "He called you on your cell phone?"

"Yeah," Phineas whimpered. "But I didn't have the translator on me so I couldn't understand what he was trying to tell me! Maybe I would've found him already…"

"No, Phineas, that's not what I meant," Candace said as she pointed towards Phineas' desk. "Do you still have the number on your phone?"

"It's in the recent calls," Phineas confirmed. But he shook his head. "I tried calling again, but they stopped picking up after the third or fourth time."

Candace took the phone from her brother, and spun his laptop towards her. After doing some typing, she turned it back and showed him a search engine.

"Why don't you type it in there, and see if it will pull up an internet phone book?" she suggested. "And find the address."

Phineas snatched up the computer and looked at it. Then he tipped his wide eyes back to Candace. "Are you allowed to do that?"

"I have no idea," Candace replied. She pointed at it. "But I say there's no reason not to give it a try."

Phineas threw his fast fingers over the keyboard. After a second, he leapt up and pointed enthusiastically at the screen.

"Five eight three three Walker Street!" he yelled as he started running around the room. "That's like a forty-five minute drive all the way on the other side of town!"

Candace leapt up and grabbed onto his arm, stopping him. Phineas looked at her anxiously and whispered, "What if I go all the way over there, and he's not there? Then I would only have less than a half hour lef—"

But Candace had leaned away and snatched Phineas' car keys off of his bedspread. She thrust them onto his chest and shushed him, "Stop thinking and drive! Drive, brother, drive!"

* * *

The room spun around Ferb's head as he fought to keep his eyes open. He was so hot; his fur wasn't helping him as he felt waves of heat rush over. He would've been sweating if he could.

He was breathing deep breaths through his mouth in an effort to cool him off, but he wished he knew how to pant the right way. And his heart was beating faster than normal; he couldn't get it to slow down no matter how loud it was.

"David… I think there's something wrong with him," Martha said nervously. She had gotten down on her hands and knees to examine Ferb. "He's been moping around all day, like something is bothering him."

Sticking her fingers in his fur, Martha let the strands show through between them in bunches. "And his skin is so hot."

"I know… why," Ferb moaned. "I wanna… be myself… again."

But then Martha had leaned her head down as she ran her fingers deeper. She backed up and commented, "Hey, David…? Had you ever noticed this before?"

"Noticed what?" he asked from his place at the kitchen table. They had just sat down to start on the freshly-made casserole.

"His fur…" Martha inspected. "At the bottom it's all… green."

"Green?" David repeated, leaving his plate and coming over. "Like the color, green?"

"After what happened, he has brown hair now… but it still grows as green," Martha spoke distantly.

"What do you mean by that?" David asked her as he, too, sat on the floor.

Martha took her hand away from Ferb's back and looked to the corner in thought. Then she asked softly, "When the dog was talking… Did he give you his name?"

"The dog wasn't talking… we decided it was Randy, remember?" David reminded her. "But yeah… I did think it was strange that he named him. It was a short name, I think it started with 'F.' Frank… Fred… no, it was more unique than that."

"Ferb Fletcher?"

"Yeah… that was it," David confirmed with a nod. "…How did you know?"

Martha looked back down at her dog and placed her hands again in his fur. "…It's the name of the missing boy."

"The one from the supermarket?" came David's question. Then he sighed in disbelief. "If the boy's brother was looking for a _dog,_ wouldn't you think he would have mentioned that?"

"Oh, I don't know," Martha said haphazardly, focused on stroking Ferb's fur gently. "I think that he honestly seemed worried out of his mind. Maybe he just forgot."

"…I'm… hungry…" Ferb mentioned as a whiff of the dinner caught his nose. "And… that smells… good…"

"He does bark in sentences…" David marveled. "But… isn't it a huge jump to go from 'Our dog's hair is green,' to 'He's really this missing seventeen-year-old kid'?"

"Maybe you're right," Martha gave in. She gave Ferb another pet along the back, before standing up. "But you've gotta admit, he is a unique guy."

Then they both stood up off of the floor, leaving Ferb on the living room carpet as they headed over to finish their dinner in the kitchen. Ferb tipped his head on the floor a bit to let his stare follow them. He was still hungry.

"He can't be a human being…" David put out, still glancing suspiciously over to Ferb as he and Martha sat down at the table once more. He said softly, under his breath while picking up his fork, "…That's just silly."


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

Drumming his fingers all along the top of the steering wheel, Phineas kept tossing anxious glances over to the digital clock on the dash. It was 7 o'clock and he was stuck at a red light!

Cars sat in front of him and behind, honking with the sounds of leftover evening rush hour. Phineas scooted further in his seat to wait impatiently for the light to turn green. He had less than a half hour left, and with traffic he was still fifteen minutes away from the address.

The little plastic box containing the pill and the rest of the serum was sitting delicately on the dashboard. It had been in Phineas' pocket, but he had slid it out in order to keep it in his sights. It might magically disappear if he wasn't looking at it every second.

The light turned. Phineas took his foot off the brake and let the car roll lightly forward as he waited for the cars in front of him to move. Finally, they budged and he was back on his way.

But Phineas had to stop at three more stoplights; probably two minutes EACH. He was counting the seconds. Eventually, however, Phineas was able to turn off of the busy city street and onto a smaller one, lined with tall buildings.

"Walker Street, Walker Street," Phineas kept repeating to himself as he read all the street names. He knew this area of the town decently well, but not enough to know exactly when his turn would come.

"There!" he yelled to no one, pulling on the left end of the wheel to make his turn. Then he started mouthing numbers under his breath.

"Five eight three three, five eight three three…" Phineas pushed his chest up against the steering wheel as he slowed to only ten miles per hour to get a good look at each building.

"Five eight three zero, five eight three two…"

But then Phineas slammed on his brakes and looked behind him, to the odd-numbered side of the street. He leaned his head under the windshield as he looked at the tall, brick building.

"It's an apartment building?" he exclaimed, turning off the car right where he had parked it. He snatched the plastic box and placed it into his pants pocket, flinging off the seatbelt in the process. Soon, he had rushed over to the front door, and stared up at it. "Well which number is it?"

Shaking his head frenetically, Phineas pushed through the door. The lobby was small, and aside from the single couch and coffee table, was no more than an empty space that led to a hallway of doorways.

Taking a haphazard glance at the clock, Phineas crossed his eyes and wheezed in an exhale as he bent over. He had ten minutes.

Running to the first door, Phineas rapped hard on it. He waited for a second while he shuffled his feet. Then he rapped again, to no answer.

So he gave up on that one, and turned to the one across from it. He banged with his knuckles until it opened.

"Hi, IIIII aaaammmm l-l-looking for… my brother. I mean a dog," Phineas threw out all in one sentence.

The bearded man in the doorway looked to Phineas with confusion. "…Who?"

"Oh I don't know how to explain it. Is he in there? Ferb!" Phineas called out with cupped hands as he leaned around the man. No reply.

"I don't think so. Sorry, thanks," Phineas blurted out, leaving the perplexed man to close the door. Instead, Phineas ran down the hallway and began to shout his brother's name.

"Ferb!" he yelled. "Ferb, where are you?"

"Stop yelling, kid!" an irritated voice shouted from behind one of the walls. But Phineas shook his head and kept his hollering.

"Ferb!"

One of the doors on the end of the hall unlatched, and Phineas saw a little old lady in her pajamas peek out. She asked quietly, "Are you looking for somebody, sweetheart?"

"Yeah!" Phineas reacted thankfully as he landed in a sprint next to her. "I'm looking for my bro-… I'm looking for a dog. Have you seen one lately?"

"Oh, like the one with that nice couple up on the Third. Sweet folks, up there," she answered reminiscently.

"On the third floor?" Phineas asked quickly. The old lady responded in a nod, and Phineas turned to head towards the stairs saying, "Thanks a lot, ma'am!"

"Good luck, sweetie," she said as he left, waving at him with a frail hand.

Phineas pushed his way through the door and flew himself up the steps. When he reached the door labeled level three, he exited and resumed his shouting. "Ferb? Ferb!"

Lying on the living room carpet, Ferb had his cheek resting on the floor. His ears twitched when he thought he heard something familiar. Tipping his head as far upwards as he could hold it, Ferb perked up his ears and listened intently. It was the soft murmurings of his name being called.

"Is that…?" Ferb started in a whimper. He made it louder as he began, "Phineas?"

He gave a few single barks, each as loud as he could muster. He took a few seconds pause between each one. "Phineas…! Phineas!"

There was a stumbling sound coming from the outside hallway, followed by rushed footsteps, and finally a hard banging on the door.

"Who could that be?" Martha wondered. She had just finished putting a plastic covering over their leftover dinner as she placed it on the countertop. She wiped her hands on a paper towel and came over to check the door.

Upon opening it, Martha saw a red-headed teenager bouncing up and down, unable to contain the energy in his feet as he shuffled them around.

"Hi, ummm, hi," he began. He was holding a small plastic box in both of his hands, which he was clutching tightly, yet carefully. "I'm trying to find my brotherrrrr—FERB!"

Phineas had drawn out the last syllable of the word. He was processing the sight of a dog in the background of the living room, who had managed to get off of the floor and was hobbling his feet over to the direction of Phineas.

Ducking underneath Martha's arm, Phineas fell down and hugged Ferb as he approached.

"Ferb! I found you!" he said as he squeezed him. Ferb put his paws on Phineas' elbow as he enjoyed the warm hug. "I'm never ever letting you go anywhere ever again."

Phineas pulled back and pointed at him. "Especially when you're a dog."

By now, David had also left the kitchen, standing next to Martha as they watched the reunion. He gestured down to Ferb and asked, "…Did you just call that dog your brother?"

"Yeah," Phineas responded. He had already pulled out the plastic box and unlatched it. He grasped the pill in two fingers and held it out above Ferb's head. "Cause he is. Open."

Drawing his jaws wide, Ferb tipped his head upside-down as Phineas dropped the capsule on his tongue. He closed and swallowed.

Ferb started to get dizzy, and his heart was still pounding like mad. Though his paws were still wobbly, Ferb found it in himself to make his way over to the stairs. He picked up speed on his way, pushing his feet as fast as he could manage as he began to sprint up them.

"Ferb!" Phineas called out after him, still standing close to the doorway. "Don't forget to wear clothes!"


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18**

Though his mind was still buzzing and the room was spinning, Ferb tried his best to move his way towards the bedroom. He tripped on his feet over towards the closet and snatched between his teeth one of David's T-shirts and jeans that were lying on the floor. Phineas was right: Ferb had a feeling his might need these in a few minutes.

Instead of falling over onto the carpet like he so desperately wanted, Ferb forced himself towards the hallway and headed to the bathroom. He dragged the shirt and pants over the tile, wishing that he could have been able to shut the door behind him.

Flinging his mouth over the edge of the bathtub, the clothes landed strewn and un-folded. Ferb took this chance to leap around the shower curtain to land on top of the clothes, and worked his nose under the bottom of the shirt.

He managed to stick his head through the head-hole, and it seemed that it took him a while to slide his paws through the sleeves. This was most likely because his arms were longer by the time the shirt reached his shoulders.

Now he could feel the clothing fabric on the skin of his back, instead of the itchy sensation of fur. He found himself lying on his stomach with his elbows supporting him. Once he had slid on the pants, he was situated on his back with his feet scrunched up against the side. It appeared that his legs had grown too long for the bathtub.

"Hey, buddy? What's going on up there?" Martha asked with concern, leaving the living room as she started her way up the steps.

"Ferb, are you okay?" Phineas also called, attempting to follow her. But he was stopped on the chest by David.

"Hold on, don't just go running into our house," he prohibited Phineas cautiously as he surveyed him up and down. "…You've already fed a strange pill to our dog. You can wait down here with me."

"Oh! I'm sorry," Phineas apologized honestly, with a step backwards and a submissive look upwards. He linked his fingers together and stared up to the top of the steps. "…I just wanted to make sure that he's okay, is all."

As Martha disappeared near the staircase's top, David just kept looking at Phineas. "…Are you the boy from the supermarket?"

"The supermarket?" Phineas asked after a second. Then he thought and replied, "Mmhmm, I was there on Saturday."

"You had lost your brother?" David repeated.

"Yeah…" Phineas mumbled. Then he pointed back up the steps. "But I just found him!"

"The dog… is really a human being?" David thought through in bafflement.

"Supposed to be," Phineas nodded.

"So what was that pill for?"

"That'll change him back into himself," Phineas explained as he held up the empty plastic box. "That was why he was sick, he needed to be a human again."

Pointing his own finger up the steps, David asked in disbelief, "So then, what is he doing up there?"

"Changing into a human," Phineas answered. "Cause he didn't want to do it down here in the living room. I bet he went to go do it in the bathroom."

* * *

Martha slowly walked her way down the hallway. She had lost sight of her dog when he went over the steps, and now she peeked into each room in an effort to find him.

"Little buddy…?" she whispered as she pushed into the bedroom. "Where did you go?"

As she left the empty bedroom, Martha turned to the next door in the hall: the bathroom. The door was slightly ajar as she slid it open.

"Did you come in here…?" she asked, looking around. The tile floor was vacant, yet the carpet rug by the shower was bunched up a bit. She edged her way inside and looked around.

Then she thought she heard a light noise. It sounded like breathing, like deep breathing. It was coming from behind the shower curtain.

"Did you jump in the bathtub, little buddy…" Martha softly questioned, taking a corner of the curtain and peeking behind it. She saw half of the tub, lightly enshrouded in a light blue shadow from the tinted curtain. The breathing had stopped now.

Panning a little, Martha pulled the curtain further, so that she could look at the other end of the tub. It was then that her eyes fell on a tall, green-haired teenager who was pressed up with his back and arms against the corner of the tile wall. He was staring at her with huge, wide eyes and appeared to have held his breath.

"AHH!" Martha and Ferb both shrieked in unison. Ferb attempted to push himself closer to the wall, but in the process slipped on his bare feet and landed with a thump in the bottom of the tub. He reached around frantically in an effort to remain hidden, and grabbed the shower curtain over his face and chest. Yet, it did no real use because his elbows and long legs were still clearly visible lying in the bathtub.

"You… are you…" Martha started. She couldn't take her gaze off of him as his bright eyes stared up at her. Ferb scrunched the curtain over his nose.

"Are you… Ferb?" she requested with an inspecting squint of her eyes. Ferb kept their gazes locked and nodded slowly. Now that he had the chance to breathe again, Ferb's chest was moving up and down rapidly. His heart was still pounding; he could have sworn Martha could hear it.

"Can you…" Martha began again. She was almost searching for another explanation as to how this teenager ended up in her bathtub. "Can you… talk?"

Ferb nodded and gulped. "Yeah… I can—I can talk."

"My dog… came up…" Martha explained, pointing out into the hallway. Then she pointed to the base of the door, and then at the tile floor. It seemed as though she was tracing the path of an invisible puppy. "My dog came up here… and he was sick."

"I'm feeling a lot better now, though, thanks," Ferb answered after a breath. He wiped some sweat away from his forehead.

"…Your hair is green," Martha observed.

Ferb just nodded again, and flicked a strand out of his eye. "Yeeeppp, it sort of grows that way."

When Ferb gulped again, he realized that he still felt the red fabric collar around his neck. He released his grasp off of the curtain and tried to look downwards at his chin. Then, he pulled on the buckle and unsnapped it, rubbing the spot where it had been.

"This is… I think this is yours…" Ferb mentioned as he leaned forward and draped it on the edge of the tub. "…You can have it back, if you like."

But when Ferb pulled back, he found himself staring intently at his fingers. He flexed them in and out and switched between looking at their fronts and their backs. Then he reached up and showed his palms to Martha.

"L-l-look," he said marvelously. "I have… fingers!"

Then he tipped his gaze down past his somewhat-too-small jeans to his big toes that were sticking up from the end of the bathtub. He wiggled them and stretched them out. "And I have feet!"

Now Ferb had leaned forward far enough to rub his hands all up and down the bottoms of his shins and ankles. "And my legs are long and I…"

He sat back up and wrapped his arms around his elbows, squeezing. "…and I'm myself again!"

But Martha stood quietly on the white floor tile as she looked at him. She was examining with an inquiring eye at the way that David's T-shirt sat loosely in folds over Ferb's shoulders.

"But you're so… thin," she said with heightening concern. "Are you alright?"

"Umm, well no, not really," Ferb started as he rubbed the side of his arm and looked shiftily to the left and right. "I've kind of been starving myself. You know, dog food isn't particularly appetizing."

"D-dog food?" Martha stuttered with her hands on her mouth. "We were feeding you dog food?"

Ferb tried to grin bashfully as his eyes moved over towards the doorway. He lifted a finger to point at it. "…May I go downstairs and see my brother now?"

Martha turned around and looked at the door. Then she spun back to Ferb and reacted, "Your brother?"

Simply nodding, Ferb clarified, "He's been crazy worried about me. I just want to let him know that I'm fine."

"Your—your brothe—Yes, yes he's worried about you!" Martha reacted, suddenly stepping forward to offer out her hand. Ferb took it gratefully. However, by the time he had situated his feet under him, Ferb realized that his legs felt like rubber.

He tripped out of the bathtub to land on the tile floor. After a moment, he attempted to push himself onto his knees and used the edge of the tub as a hand-hold. The second time worked better, and soon he was hobbling on two feet out of the bathroom doorway, heading for downstairs where Phineas would be waiting for him.


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19**

David and Phineas had been sitting together on the couch as they waited for Martha to return. David had been very interested by the story Phineas had to tell him, as Phineas talked the minutes away.

Then the sounds of heavy footsteps met their ears, and Phineas quickly turned around to spot the figure of Ferb—human and all—leaning on the railing as he came walking down the steps, with Martha following.

"Ferb!" Phineas exclaimed, leaping up off the couch as Ferb reached the bottom. He grabbed onto Ferb by the wrist and pulled out his arm above his head. "My, what long arms you have!"

"All the better to hug you with," Ferb replied, as he wrapped his arms around his brother.

"Ah! You're squishing me!" Phineas giggled from under him. "Did they get longer since the last time I saw you?"

"Na," Ferb replied as he released him. "You just haven't seen me in six days."

Martha could not help herself from clutching onto David as she watched this, and grew tears of joy. "Aww, David! They're brothers!"

Through an almost bewildered smile, David nodded, "No doubt about that."

Now Phineas was continuing to poke Ferb in the side. He laughed, "Haha, Ferb. You're not fluffy anymore."

"Why?" Ferb asked with a sinister smile. "Did you like is when I was fluffy?"

"Maaaybe a little," Phineas said softly, before looking up at him. "But I would much rather have you as you."

He pulled out a hand and held it flat in the air, up at where Ferb's scruffy and uncombed hair met his forehead. Then Phineas drew it down to his own head and satisfactorily agreed, "Yep. Still eight inches."

Ferb smiled at him, before the silent room was broken by a loud and low grumbling sound. Ferb looked down for a second, before bending over and clutching both arms around his stomach. "…I'm hungry."

From his place bent over, Ferb looked up at Phineas with an almost shameful expression. He winced and revealed to him guiltily, "…I haven't eaten anything since that slice of pizza you gave me at the park."

"What!" Phineas leapt backwards. "That was four days ago! You're going to die!"

"Relax, Phin, I'm not going to die," Ferb returned, amused. "People can go for weeks without eating, and I've been drinking plenty of water."

But Phineas had grabbed onto his shoulders and turned him. "No. You. Food. Now."

Ferb reached up and scratched the back of his head. He looked awkwardly over to Martha and David. "Well… from my place on the living room carpet, that casserole did look pretty delicious…"

"Yes!" Martha exclaimed in realization. "Come into the kitchen and we'll get you fed, you poor thing."

As Ferb had predicted, the homemade dinner tasted as good as it smelled. Though he was the only one eating—Martha and David had already had dinner, and Phineas refused to intrude—Ferb still appreciated each forkful of it.

"I still can't believe…" Martha spoke as she watched Ferb eat. "That we were trying to feed you dog food. I'm so sorry, Ferb…"

"It's not a problem," Ferb responded with food in his mouth. "I mean, I was a dog. I don't blame you. What else were you going to feed me?"

Ferb slid his plate over to Phineas, who just looked at it in confusion. Ferb gestured with his eyes towards it.

"Oh, no, Ferb, I don't want any. You eat it, bro. You eat it all."

But Ferb slid the plate back and looked at it. He slumped his shoulders and stared upwards to Martha and David across from him. "I'm sorry…"

"For what?" both of them asked in turn.

"Well, you just went to the shelter and got a new dog," Ferb elaborated. "Then he goes and turns into a human. And… it's not that I don't like you guys, but I already have a family and I want to go back to my own home. Do you want me to get you a new dog?"

"Oh…" David responded, as he and Martha exchanged a surprised and unsure glance. "No, that's okay. We never actually paid the shelter, we were going to do that on Wednesday…"

Though Martha, sitting beside David, couldn't help but keep her eyes on Ferb as she softly laughed. "You were my buddy."

Ferb smiled saying, "You can still give me a hug, it doesn't matter to me. Though it's up to you."

He grinned over his shoulder at his brother, and pointed with his thumb at him. "Because, in Phineas' words, _I'm not fluffy anymore."_

Martha repositioned herself in her chair as she shared in Phineas' giggling. "You _did_ make a good dog."

"Oh, I don't know about THAT," Ferb responded awkwardly as he stared at the edge of the ceiling and scratched behind his ears. "I didn't even know how to pant the right way."

David tossed a finger in thought, pointing out, "I did actually notice that. I was wondering why you were doing it wrong."

"You… _noticed_ that?" Ferb gasped. He slid his chair backwards and shuffled his feet beneath him. He had grown red in the face. "My, that's rather embarrassing…"

Ferb felt a poke on his shoulder and turned to see that Phineas had his tongue hanging out of the side of his mouth. He poked him again saying, "Ith thith whath ooo were thooing?"

Placing his elbows on the table and his palms on his forehead, Ferb smiled and closed his eyes to hide his amusement. "That is… actually a quite accurate depiction of what I was doing."

Phineas pulled his tongue back in and grinned. Then he grabbed Ferb by the hand and held his palm up to the light. He reminded everybody, "But these aren't paws anymore. So Ferb doesn't have to be bothered by all those dog-things."

"Right," Ferb agreed. "Now all I have to be bothered by are teenager things."

Passing a glance over Martha and David, Ferb's eyes got wide in realization. "Like where Mom thinks I am right now..."

"Ooohhhh yeah!" Phineas exclaimed. "Mom thinks you're just out doing stuff... And Candace!"

Standing up out of his chair, Phineas yanked Ferb by the elbow to follow him. "Candace has been pulling her hair out about you!"

Ferb stood up, and nodded towards the two on the other side of the table. "Thank you for your hospitality. I'd best be getting home."

"Yes," Phineas agreed, once more giving Ferb a huge hug around his waist. "Thanks for keeping him safe for me! When he disappeared in the park I thought he'd fallen off a cliff or fell in a hole or who knows what else...!"

Phineas let go of Ferb, who just grinned and rolled his eyes at him. Phineas turned back and resumed, "But he was here all along with nice people!"

"Well," Ferb began, lifting up the front of his shirt with two fingers. "I'll be sure to drop by tomorrow to return the clothes you've been so kind to inadvertently lend me."

He and Phineas turned to head towards the front door, but Ferb stopped before reaching it and looked back again. "Who knows... maybe I'll get to meet your new dog, and whatever you decide to call him."

"I was never good with names," David admitted. "I mean, we never even named you."

"I dunno," Martha poked in. "I like the name Ferb. If we got a new dog, it would be nice to have another Ferb in the house. It's so unique."

"Haha," Ferb chuckled through his nose. "In that case, I might stop by and give this 'Ferb' a few pointers."

Then he reached down to start turning the knob, however stopped himself and felt compelled to add, "Though, if I might request. Next time I come back here I'd like to do it as a person, please."

Phineas, David, and Martha all just smiled at him. After a second, the door had already been pushed open and Phineas started his way out. Ferb began to follow, before turning around and walking backwards down the hall beside his brother.

He waved his arm brightly. "Bye Martha and David!"

David put his arm around Martha's shoulders, as they both waved back. "Bye Phineas and Ferb!"

Martha smiled a warm smile as she watched the two of them giddily dance down the steps. "Sweet boys."

* * *

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**All My PnF Fanfics:**

**PnF: Timeloops**

**PnF: Ghosts**

**PnF: Stolen Identity**

**PnF: Stuck Like Brothers**

**PnF: Mind Trapped **

**PnF: Species is a Constant (Viewing)**

**PnF: Lifeleap (Currently Posting)**


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